Loved you Twice Over
by smylealong
Summary: In High-school Ulquiorra and Orihime were complete strangers. Later they turned best friends who secretly loved each other. But circumstances were such that they lost touch. Now, 10 years later, pure chance brings them together and old sparks are rekindled. Ulquihime. AU. Partly a high-school fic.
1. Chapter 1

What's better than an Ulquihime fluff? Two Ulquihime fluffs rolled into one and that's exactly what this is. The fic will alternate between present and past. Ulquiorra may seem a little OOC to some of you, but I'm trying to keep him as much in character while still keeping him human. Also in this chapter, he's meeting Orihime again after 10 years. He converses freely with her because he already knows her well enough.

Beta Cerice Belle

* * *

**Chapter 1**

**PRESENT**

Ulquiorra stretched his tired legs and sighed. He hated airports. He hated flying. And worst of all, he hated waiting. An ice-storm had delayed all flights and consequently he was stuck at the airport. He glanced at his watch and realized it had been seven hours since he had landed here. Yesterday, he had spent the entire day attending a boring conference, now he wanted to head home but instead he was stuck at the airport. Technically, he was here to change flights and his wait here shouldn't have been more than an hour but the flight times kept getting pushed back and now that the snowstorm had become an ice storm, there was nothing he could do but wait.

Thoroughly bored, he shut his laptop and yawned behind his hand. He reached for the styrofoam cup in front of him and peered at its contents with distaste. He couldn't bear to drink the vile fluid that was pretending to be coffee. He put it back on the side table he was sharing with four other passengers. Putting his laptop in its sleeve he pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose, picked the cup and walked over to the trash can. Dumping the nearly empty cup into the trash he started to walk back to his seat but suddenly, he didn't feel like sitting anymore. If there was something he was thankful of, it was that he travelled light. So other than that one small trolley that contained his laptop, some files and clothes, he had no other luggage. Dressed in a pair of black jeans, maroon shirt and a brown trench coat, Ulquiorra earned several appreciative glances from the bored female passengers as he took his trolley. Fairly certain that no flight would be taking off anytime soon, he decided to walk around the airport just to enhance circulation in his legs and generally do _something_, anything other than sitting in one place and waiting for some miracle to happen.

He had been in Terminal 3 and had walked over to Terminal 1, thankful that the terminals were connected. The other benefit of connected terminals was that he didn't have to pass through security yet again. That would have been a hassle. He was walking around aimlessly when suddenly a voice called out.

"Ulquiorra? Is that you?"

Frowning he turned around and found himself staring at a beautiful auburn-haired woman dressed in a navy blue knee-length sweater dress that showed off an excellent figure. She had her hair tied in a half bun with some of it falling on one side. A mother-of-pearl bracelet adorned her wrist. His emerald eyes softened as he spoke gently,

"Carrot-top?"

"It's really you," the woman said happily, standing up from her seat. Without warning she flung her arms around him enveloping him in a bear hug. He hesitated only for a fraction of a second before returning the hug. After a few moments she pulled back.

"It is so good to see you!" she trilled holding his hands in hers, "how long has it been?"

_Ten years, three months, fourteen days, nine hours and thirty-six minutes._ He thought. Aloud he said, "Around ten years, I think."

"Nah, I'd say more than that," she replied with a wide smile.

"So, why are you here?" he asked looking around.

"Oh I was actually on my way home," she said as she pulled him to sit next to her, "I'm stuck in transit, you may say. What about you?"

"The same," he replied.

"Oh still verbose I see," she said giggling.

He felt his lips twitch slightly as he said, "Well, you still give off the vibe of being a walking, talking disaster."

"What are you talking about?" she said in mock offense, "I've changed plenty. I'm no longer the ditzy, scatterbrained, airhead you knew." She waved her hands around to emphasize her point and in the process knocked over her bottle of water.

"Yes, evidently," he replied straightening it.

She laughed, "That's just the Universe hell bent on proving me wrong!"

"Really?" he retorted, "That's the best excuse you could come up with? I thought you were better than that Orihime."

She threw back her head and laughed heartily, "Gosh, it's been so long since I've had an entertaining conversation like this. Why did you disappear Ulquiorra? " The laughter was gone from her eyes.

He looked at her unblinkingly before replying, "No reason," looking around for a change of topic he said, "I don't see any rings on your finger. I'd have thought you would at least be engaged by now."

"Whom to?" she asked raising her brows, "It's not like I had a pick of guys to choose from. My relationship turned out to be an unmitigated disaster and my best- friend was MIA."

He shuffled in his seat uncomfortably.

"What about you? I don't see any rings on you either," she said with a small smile.

"Found no one," he said dryly.

Her eyes widened, "You're kidding, why would any woman in her senses pass up on that?" she let her eyes roam over him to emphasize her point.

Ulquiorra rolled his eyes, "Looks like you've kept in touch with Grimmjow."

Orihime giggled, "So, where's home these days?" she asked.

"I moved back to Karakura last year," he replied, thankful that they'd moved to safer topics.

"What?" she sounded surprised, "You've been in Karakura for one whole year and you didn't even get in touch with me? Ulquiorra Schiffer," she was frowning, "looks like you and I are going to have a problem."

"I didn't know you were still in Karakura," he replied, his excuse sounding lame to his own ears. Orihime loved the place; there was no way she'd move anywhere else.

"Whatever!" she replied with a roll of her eyes.

* * *

The two friends sat at a bistro in the airport. Ulquiorra had ordered a scotch and a hickory smoked bacon and ham sandwich. He was currently talking to someone on the phone and Orihime could tell that he was angry at the person on the other end. The years had been kind on him. As a boy he had been good looking but now, as a twenty-seven year old man, he was devastatingly handsome. The glasses added character, making him almost irresistible. She felt her skin tingle in a fresh wave of goose-bumps, simply looking at him. Those emerald green eyes, the silky ebony hair, the sharp features and the pale skin added up to a face she found she could look at for hours.

Ulquiorra had disappeared from her life without any explanation. One day he had been there and the next day he was gone. Orihime had looked for him desperately, but to no avail. His legal guardian, a weird and creepy man named Aizen, had assured everyone that wherever Ulquiorra was, he was fine. His disappearance had affected Orihime in more ways than she'd have imagined. It had affected her diet, her studies, her relationship, her health and almost every other aspect of her life. It was as though Ulquiorra had taken a part of her with him. It was much later that she realized that he had indeed taken a part of her with him, he had stolen her heart.

But with him gone, she had had to bury her feelings deep inside. Time was a great healer. Over the years, she had dated several men but none of them had been serious. As a psychiatrist, she hardly ever had time for anything other than her patients. Somehow, gradually, her work had become her life. But the good thing was that she had managed to get over Ulquiorra.

All that was left now was residual warmth. She still loved him, of that she was sure, just not romantically, not anymore. The tingle in her skin and the weakening of her knees was pure, unadulterated lust. In front of her was a fine example of the male species in his prime. She was a woman in her prime and it had been almost four years since she'd last been with a man.

Ulquiorra disconnected the phone with a soft sigh, "Moron!"

"Do I want to know?" Orihime asked reaching for a French-fry.

"Not unless you desperately need to understand the commodities market," he replied wryly.

"Ugh! Boring!" she replied with a wave of her hand.

"Thought so. So, what do you do these days?" he asked.

"I'm a psychiatrist," she replied.

"Hmmm," from the twinkle in his eyes, Orihime knew a smart comment was coming, "looks like the loony-bin really agrees with you."

Orihime laughed, "What an ass- backward compliment, but then it's to be expected of you. "

"I assume you are looking after your father's business?" she asked furthering the conversation.

"No," he said leaning back on his chair swirling his scotch, "I sold it. There were only so many times I could stand looking at processed food being packed."

Orihime nodded in understanding.

"I started a small venture of my own, which is quite successful I would say," Taking a sip he continued, "I run a consultancy, financial consultants."

"That would explain the commodities market," Orihime said.

The two of them lapsed into comfortable silence for a time before both spoke up at the same time,

"Who all are you …,"

"What happened with …"

Ulquiorra spoke up, "Sorry, you were saying?"

"Whatever happened to you?" Orihime gaped, "You … you are actually being … polite?"

Ulquiorra's lips twitched, "I'll remember to be rude next time."

"You better. Now what would the Ulquiorra I know say?" she asked.

The amusement was still evident in his eyes as he said, "'Don't interrupt me while I'm talking'."

"Now that's more like it," Orihime said as she leaned back on the chair, grinning.

He took his glasses off and wiped a hand over his face, "I can't believe I actually missed you."

She lifted her elegant shoulders in a half-shrug, "Of course you did! I'm awesome."

He leaned back on his chair as he watched her sip her beer. She had always been the most beautiful person he had known – and not just physically. She was a beautiful human being. In High-school they had been complete strangers and would have remained so if not for a freak accident. That small and totally insignificant occurrence had started a chain of events that had led to the two of them becoming best of friends in a very short span of time. He hadn't even realized when he had fallen in love with her. His realization had wrought havoc on him, however he had managed to keep his mouth shut till one day when things went completely out of control and Ulquiorra had done the only thing he could think of, he disappeared.

Much later he'd gotten in touch with Grimmjow and explained everything to him. His blue-haired friend had, surprisingly, understood. Grimmjow had promised him that he would never let Orihime know what had happened. Over the years, he had kept in touch with Grimmjow. Ulquiorra knew that his friend was in touch with Orihime but he never spoke of her and Ulquiorra never asked. Although it had hurt him deeply, but time had numbed the pain and gradually all Orihime was, was a pleasant memory. One that he cherished dearly but he had moved on. He had dated a few girls in those years and his last relationship had looked like it would materialize into something. In fact they were even preparing for engagement but then Ulquiorra had discovered that the girl had been two-timing him with one of her colleagues. That had firmly put an end to dating scenarios for him. He had been single and almost celibate for about two and a half years.

Now seeing his old love in front of him had brought forth some very mixed emotions. He was happy, happier than he had been in a long time. He was also nervous. She'd always read him pretty well and now that she was a trained psychiatrist he was worried she might know his deep secret. He also felt a small pang of the old pain. Time had dulled it and now it didn't hurt as much, it was just slightly uncomfortable. But the most dominant emotion scared him. He desperately wanted to take her to his bed. Blinking away his lust filled thoughts, he concentrated on what she was saying.

"… Need to be home. My patients would be waiting. This ice-storm is going to really put me into heavy backlog. I shudder to think the number of hours I'll have to clock in just to catch up. I …"

She stopped speaking because something was being announced over the PA. Cocking his head slightly Ulquiorra listened,

"All flights have been cancelled due to unprecedented bad weather. Service is expected to resume at 7:30am tomorrow morning."

A collective groan went around the airport.

"This sucks!" Orihime said disgusted, "We have to spend the night at a friggin airport? That's … ugh!"

"The storm is predicted to let off in about an hour. You can go to a hotel and spend the night there. The roads are going to be icy though, so drive carefully," he paused briefly and took in her somber expression "What's wrong?"

"Nothing," she replied.

"Say that to someone else," he replied brusquely, "I can see that you're lying. Something I said has bothered you."

Orihime lowered her hazel eyes, "It's just that, I don't know how to drive."

"What?" he asked nonplussed.

"I can't drive," she was studiously avoiding his eyes.

Ulquiorra frowned, "Orihime, what are you not telling me?"

Still keeping her eyes averted she insisted, "There is nothing to tell Ulquiorra, I just can't drive, that's all."

Ulquiorra sighed, "Maybe there is nothing more to it than that but if that is all there is to it, why don't you look me in the eye and tell me so?"

She looked into his emerald eyes and started to say that there was nothing wrong but faltered.

"What's wrong, Orihime?" he asked softly.

She looked away from him. Keeping her eyes fixed on the cake display she said, "Six years ago, Sora had persuaded me to take a vacation with him. While returning from there we had an accident. He didn't make it."

Ulquiorra's eyes widened. Sora was her brother and the only family she had.

"I've been scared to drive ever since," she finished almost inaudibly.

His voice was soft, barely discernible, "I understand."

"Where were you Ulquiorra? I really needed you then," she said in a low voice.

"I'm sorry. Had I known, I would've been there," he meant it.

She nodded. She knew the truth in his words, he knew. The two of them sat in complete silence, each lost in their own thoughts. After finishing their orders, they paid the bill and walked out.

"So I guess I'll see you in Karakura then?" Orihime said, "Give me your number."

Ulquiorra fished a business card out from the inner pocket as he said, "Why? You have close to fourteen hours to kill, what are you planning to do?"

"Nothing," she replied as she got her business card and handed it to him, "I was just going to be at the airport. I figured you'd want to go to a hotel and freshen up."

"Yes I would, but you're coming with me," Ulquiorra said.

Instantly Orihime's mind painted some very vivid scenarios that flushed her cheeks, "What? No! I can't possibly …"

Ulquiorra raised an eyebrow, "You prefer to spend the night in these uncomfortable chairs rather than sleep in a comfortable bed?"

The idea of a bed was alluring indeed but for all the wrong reasons. But he did have a point, sleeping on a bed was far more inviting than sitting all night on a cramped chair. Giving herself a mental shake Orihime smiled, "Fine, you win. Let's go."

He nodded and started walking. Orihime smiled to herself before she started to follow him. They reached the car-rental block. As Ulquiorra stood in the line, Orihime went into the restroom and added black slacks to protect her legs from the cold. She put a long overcoat and was about to leave when overtaken by a sudden impulse, she retouched her make-up.

The queue at the rentals was long and it was almost an hour before they finally got a basic sedan. Ulquiorra's eyes flicked over to Orihime as he adjusted the mirrors and steering wheel. She sat looking deathly pale, clutching the sides of the seat so tightly that her knuckles had gone pale.

"Hey," he called out softly, "we'll be fine."

She nodded fiercely, her lips shut into a firm line. He patted her hand once and started the car. With Orihime's very apparent fear and the icy conditions of the road, he didn't want to drive any further than absolutely necessary. Keeping it as slow as was possible, he drove over to the nearest hotel. He had barely parked the car in the crowded lot when Orihime shot out of it. She stood leaning against the door taking deep breaths as Ulquiorra shut the engine, locked the car and got their luggage out of the trunk. He walked over to her,

"You OK?"

She nodded and took her trolley from him.

"The road is icy, be careful," he said and started walking towards the hotel entrance.

This was one of the reasons why she had missed Ulquiorra. All her other friends would have fussed over her. Ichigo wouldn't have let her pull her trolley; Uryuu would have held her arm as he guided her towards the hotel because he would be worried she would fall; Tatsuki would mother her to no extent; Rukia and Sado, while better than most would still be protective of her. But not Ulquiorra in fact, if she did fall because of the ice, he wouldn't pick her up. He would simply smirk and shake his head, probably mutter a wise-crack about how ditzy she was.

Carefully, with her feet crunching over ice, she followed Ulquiorra into the hotel. Once inside she found that Ulquiorra was at the desk talking to the clerk. She walked over and heard the clerk explaining to him that there was a power failure in one wing of the hotel and therefore the number of available rooms had been cut down drastically. As of now they only had one queen room that was vacant.

"We'll take it," Orihime said overriding Ulquiorra's protest.

Ulquiorra cursed inside. Trust his rotten luck! He had come to the hotel with the hopes of a good night's sleep but now with Orihime lying only a few feet away from him, he was pretty sure that sleep was the last thing he was getting. Thankfully the room would have two beds, so that was a saving grace. Silently he walked alongside her to the room they had. Once inside, he turned around to face her,

"I will have you know I'm not comfortable with this."

'_Not comfortable'_ did not even begin to describe Orihime's nerves. Sighing she said, "Well, think about it. Because of the icy conditions and me, you will drive much slower than usual. Already there's a scarcity of rooms in this hotel, who knows what the situation like out there and …"

"I know," Ulquiorra said tightly, "Choose a bed. I'm going to freshen up."

Without waiting for an answer, he unzipped his trolley, got out his PJs and disappeared into the bathroom. Orihime settled down on the nearest bed. This was exactly like it was all those years ago. Whenever they were nervous or uncomfortable, Orihime would babble and Ulquiorra would be gruff. Not that he was courteous otherwise, but he would degenerate markedly. Finally Ulquiorra emerged from the bathroom and walked over to the other bed wordlessly. Orihime grabbed her things and went inside.

Ulquiorra sighed; this was going to be a long night.


	2. Chapter 2

Whoa! I wasn't expecting the overwhelming response that I received. Thank you everyone!

So this chapter goes to High school and shows us how Ulquiorra and Orihime met. This is how the story will proceed; every odd chapter will show us the present timeline and their lives as adults and every even chapter will show their lives in the High school. So the two stories will run parallel to each other.

News on other update: Trust to Hope's update will be a little delayed. I'm unwell (down with a stomach virus) and not able to write much.

Beta: Cerice Belle.

* * *

**Chapter 2**

**PAST**

Ten years ago:

Orihime ran up the stairs at top speed. Damn she was late! She had been so sure that she'd set the alarm but for some unknown reason, it hadn't rung. And consequently, she'd woken almost an hour later. She skipped shower and breakfast and had run pell-mell to the school. Despite cutting corners, she'd arrived fifteen minutes late and consequently, the whole building looked empty except for the janitor. Running at break-neck speed, she turned into the corridor of her class room and gasped. There right in front of her was a boy heading towards the class and in her current momentum; she was going to crash into him. She tried to stop herself but she wasn't going to make it. Too late she called out a warning. The boy turned, saw her hurtling towards him and his eyes widened at the thought of the inevitable and then …

CRASH!

"Ow." the boy's deep voice came from beneath her.

Mortified Orihime sat up and opened her mouth to apologize but words failed her. With wide eyes she saw that the boy's right hand was covered in a plaster.

"Oh my God!" she gasped, "I broke your hand didn't I?"

"Does it look like it happened now?" he deadpanned, "Now get off me!"

Orihime could have died on the spot. She had no idea that she had been sitting on him. And of all the people in the entire Universe, she had chosen Ulquiorra Schiffer – one of the 'notorious four', the school gang - to be the witness of something so humiliating. Embarrassed beyond words she stood up and started to apologize profusely. Completely unfazed by her apologies, he pulled himself up, picked up his bag, slung it over his shoulder and started walking towards the class. After a couple of steps he paused, turned his head fractionally and said, "Are you going to stand there or are you coming in?"

With a squeak, she snatched her bag from the floor and caught up to him. She kept apologizing all the way to the classroom (which wasn't far) and he kept ignoring her. The door to the class room opened and the two of them walked in to some catcalls, whispers and one "Wow, that's unexpected!" from the students.

Orihime didn't think she had ever been more embarrassed. Knowing the school's general nosy attitude, her name was going to be linked to Ulquiorra's – a notion she heartily disapproved of. Ulquiorra however looked supremely unconcerned as he fished out a note from his shirt pocket and handed it to the teacher before walking off towards his friends.

"Well Miss Inoue," Mr Kyoraku stared at her, "what do you have to say for yourself?"

"It was an accident, I swear! I was late and I ran as fast as I could. I hadn't seen him in the corridor until it was too late and I crashed into him and …"

"What are you talking about?" Kyoraku asked incredulously.

"I was explaining myself," she replied.

"How is that an explanation of why you are late?" he was completely confused.

"Oh!" she rubbed the back of her head sheepishly, "I … My alarm clock didn't go so …"

"Go take your seat. Make sure this is not repeated," he ordered sternly.

She muttered a hasty 'thank you' before returning to her bench amidst snickers, her face redder than a tomato.

* * *

Ulquiorra sat, fiddling with his plate of spaghetti. He hated the spaghetti the school cafeteria made; they always put too much garlic in the sauce. Also the spaghetti was doing nothing to detract him from the insane itch beneath the plaster in a place that he couldn't reach.

"Oi gloom and doom," Grimmjow called him from across the table, "What's wrong?"

"Aside from the fact that you are an obnoxious, loud and foul mouthed moron? Nothing."

This was regular conversation between him and his blue-haired friend. They had an odd sort of relationship, one that no one outside of their group understood. To the outsiders, these two might have seemed like bitter rivals who only tolerated each other because of common friends; but the truth was, they were closer to each other than anyone else.

"Yeah," Grimmjow drawled as his girl-friend Nel took a seat next to him, "and Nnoitra's gonna get fucking straight A's this term,"

"Hey," the tall boy interjected, "I got a B-."

"That's because I let you copy from my assignment," Szayel replied, "Honestly though, how could you get a B- when you copied my assignment word for word? I mean I got an A+ for the same thing."

"Yeah, gloat!" Nnoitra said defensively.

"He's not gloating Nnoitra," Nel said sweetly, "It is pretty baffling actually. How can you mess up copying?"

"It's not baffling actually," Ulquiorra answered, "Nnoitra simply lacks the cranial capacity to copy."

Szayel and Grimmjow guffawed as Nel giggled and Nnoitra abused all of them vigorously. A melodious, tinkling laugh drew Ulquiorra's attention away from his group. Turning his torso he looked around to locate the owner of the laugh who turned out to be the auburn haired girl who had collided with him that morning. What was her name again? Otohime? No, something Hime, he had never really bothered to learn or remember her name. He shrugged and turned his attention back to the unappetizing plate of spaghetti.

"Say," Nnoitra leaned in towards him, with a lecherous grin on his face, his long hair dangling over his eyepatch, "Did you really crash into miss big boobies there?"

"You're crass." Ulquiorra replied with disgust.

Nnoitra looked surprised, "What? I'd fuckin' give an eye to exchange places with you. Gosh those boobies! Heaven!"

"Pity you'll have none remaining to see them," Grimmjow replied.

"What the fuck does that mean?" Nnoitra asked incredulously.

Szayel scoffed, "Seriously? Do we have to spell everything out for you? You have only one eye idiot, if you give that eye, what are you going to see those 'boobies' with?"

"Guys!" Nel cut in with a faint flush on her cheeks, "Can we change the topic please? I'm a little uncomfortable with all this talk of boobies."

"Why babe?" Grimmjow enquired putting an arm around her, "You have a gorgeous pair!"

"SHUT UP!" Nel said, hitting him on his chest.

Szayel smirked, "Tch! No tact. It's a wonder you got a girlfriend."

Grimmjow looked squarely at his pink haired friend and said, "And you'll never get laid 'cause you're such a nerd."

"Excuse me, but unlike you, 'getting laid' is not my priority," Szayel defended himself.

Ulquiorra muttered under his breath, "Of course it isn't, given that it's an improbability."

"You're one to fucking talk," Nnoitra replied, "You're a nerd too."

Ulquiorra shrugged as if to say 'whatever'. But everyone in the group knew, nerd or not, all Ulquiorra had to do was ask and a line of girls were ready to jump on to his bed. But for reasons that were beyond his friends, he never even looked at his so called "fan-girls". The truth was Ulquiorra didn't care. He knew of the whispers behind his back. He knew that his fans only cared for the 'bad-boy' image. He knew that they saw him as a challenge, one they had to win for bragging rights. No one wanted to have anything more to do with him. The well-publicized scandal about his family coupled with his indifferent demeanor and aura of unapproachability had somehow made him famous, and not in a good way. His uncommon good looks simply added to his infamy. He was the boy girls talked about in the locker rooms.

For Ulquiorra, none of it mattered. Before the 'incident', he had been the quiet, shy and studious boy who hardly drew attention to himself. Then puberty and the scandal happened. All of a sudden, the shy boy was in limelight. The scrawny frame had filled in with wiry musculature. The face had lost its babyish look and the features became sharp. The midnight hair, which had always been silky, was now longer. The voice had lost its feminine quality and had become deep and manly. And the scandal had given him unwanted and unprecedented attention. Overnight, Ulquiorra had become a hot-property.

Girls found him dangerous, exciting. Boys saw him as threat. As a result he found himself the unwilling recipient of many jealous shoves, pranks and nasty whispers. He had initially tried his level best to explain that he was not responsible for what had happened but no one listened. He had then tried to ignore but it was tough. Girls clung to him, much to his annoyance and boys had started to play mean pranks on him. He had borne it all with a sombre expression and silence but then, one senior by the name of Jiroumaru had crossed a line. He had left a pile of dog-poop in Ulquiorra's locker. Grimmjow had seen it and had informed Ulquiorra. Since Grimmjow and his small band of friends had never bothered Ulquiorra, nor did they have anything to do with Jiroumaru, he had no reason to suspect otherwise.

Ulquiorra had waited until lunch and had cornered Jiroumaru, who was six inches taller and about twenty pounds heavier than him. Completely unfazed by his opponent's larger size, Ulquiorra had told him that he had not appreciated the joke and if Jiroumaru had two brain cells to rub together, he would apologize and back off. The senior had laughed and called him a wuss. He had even gone on to say that he was going to find many more piles in his locker. Jiroumaru never saw the punch coming. Ulquiorra proceeded to give him a few well-placed kicks and punches and in less than thirty seconds, Jiroumaru was on the ground in a groaning heap and Ulquiorra had barely broken a sweat.

The event effectively put an end to the bullying. It had also sealed Ulquiorra's reputation as a 'bad-boy'. The message had been loud and clear, he wasn't one to be messed with. The one good thing that had come off it was that he had found real friends. Grimmjow, Szayel and Nnoitra had a bit of a reputation themselves so they had no trouble welcoming the fourth delinquent in their gang.

The bell rang signaling the end of the lunch hour. With a sigh Ulquiorra picked up his unfinished plate of spaghetti and dumped it into a trash can nearby. As he was exiting, he saw that the auburn haired girl with the beautiful laugh was also heading towards the exit. This time her eyes held a doe-like expression as she was looking at a tall boy whom he recognized as Ichigo Kurosaki, Grimmjow's rival. Kurosaki was talking to a short, black-haired girl, and was completely oblivious that someone was walking behind him, clearly smitten. So lost was the girl in Kurosaki that she had no idea where she was headed and as a result, Ulquiorra knew that she would bump on to him – again.

Since she was dangerously close to colliding with him again, he held up his left hand. She caught the movement from the corner of her eyes, stopped in her tracks and looked at him. He stepped aside pointedly and waved her on with an exaggerated sweep of his left hand. With a half grin she walked away. Behind her, Ulquiorra shook his head.

"What was that?" Nel asked curiously.

"Long story," was all he replied.

* * *

"What was that?" Tatsuki asked as they walked from the cafeteria to the class-room.

"What was what?" Orihime asked curiously.

Tatsuki looked at her friend, "Ulquiorra Schiffer's display at the cafeteria?"

"Oh that," Orihime giggled, "He was actually taunting me. He must think I'm a scatterbrain. I crashed into him this morning. And guess what, I thought I was the one who broke his hand."

Despite the fact that Tatsuki absolutely loathed those hooligans, she couldn't help but laugh at her friend's stupidity, "Oh God Hime, you can be such a klutz! I can't imagine the scathing remark he must have passed. He's not known as 'acid-tongue' for no reason."

Orihime laughed, "Actually he didn't say anything too rude. He was pretty normal, considering."

"Lucky you," Chizuru muttered, "It must have been your gorgeous looks. I bet if I had crashed on to him, he'd have killed me on the spot."

"Oh come on!" Orihime waved a hand in front of her, "I don't think he's that bad. I mean except for the Jiroumaru incident all those years ago, what has he done, really? I don't think he's as bad as rumors paint him to be, strange maybe, but not bad."

Chizuru's eyes widened, "Have you forgotten about 'the scandal'? It's said that he …"

Chizuru never got to finish her sentence for someone cleared their throat behind them rather loudly. The three girls turned around to find themselves staring at the subject of their conversation. Orihime turned bright red as if she had been the one who had brought up the taboo topic.

His startling emerald eyes stared at her for the fraction of a second longer than her friends before he spoke, "Next time you girls decide to gossip, at least have the sense to look around."

With those words he walked around the stunned trio and into the class-room.

* * *

Mr. Ukitake was explaining a complex mathematical formula, but Orihime's mind was elsewhere. She was consumed by an intense feeling of guilt. How could she have done that? She knew exactly how Ulquiorra must've felt when he had overheard their conversation, having been in his place not so long ago. She had sworn to herself that she would never do that to someone else and there she was, doing exactly that.

Orihime had come to Karakura elementary in the fourth grade and had instantly attracted a lot of attention because of her unusual hair color. 'Carrot-top' and 'volcano' had been a few of the kinder names for her. She had been subjected to ruthless bullying. She couldn't walk the corridor without someone pulling her hair or someone knocking her books out of her hand. She'd borne it all with a smiling face. She'd cried only in the safety of her room, and that too only when her brother was not home.

However one day, things changed. Four senior girls had surrounded Orihime and had started to pull her hair. Soon things spiraled out of control and before Orihime knew, one of them had chopped off a portion of her hair. It was then that Tatsuki had intervened. Tatsuki was the resident Karate champion and everyone knew that if she wanted, she could have beaten all the girls black and blue. Tatsuki had declared that Orihime was under her protection and that had pretty much ensured that no one ever bothered Orihime again.

But Orihime still remembered how gut-wrenching it was to hear nasty gossips about oneself. Ulquiorra maybe weird, rude and downright antisocial even but that didn't mean that she had the right to say something so hurtful about him. What she'd done was bad and she had to apologize, regardless of the consequences.

* * *

As Ulquiorra was walking back home, he heard someone call out his name. Surprised, he turned around to find that auburn-haired girl waving at him, signaling for him to stop. He gazed at her curiously. She wasn't one of his so-called 'fan-girls'; she was clearly besotted with Kurosaki, so why was she chasing him? Curiosity made him stay and wait for her to catch up.

Reaching him, she bent down, putting her hands on her knees as she huffed to catch her breath.

"What do you want?" he asked brusquely.

"I – _huff huff_ – I wanted – _huff_ – to apologize," she replied.

"Wasn't that profusion of apologies enough?" he was completely perplexed.

Still out of her breath, she held out a hand, asking him to wait. She took the bag off her shoulder and dug into it. From within it, she procured a single yellow gerbera. Extending it towards him she said,

"I'm not here to apologize for crashing into you. We were mean to you today. We had no right whatsoever to speak those unkind words about you, especially since we don't even know you. I imagine that must have hurt. Please accept this as my apology."

Ulquiorra was stunned. In his life he had only heard people say nasty things about him; no one had ever apologized to him or thought even for a second how he must have felt. Hatred he could handle, ruthless teasing didn't crack his armor, and rudeness rarely bothered him. But this? He had no idea how to handle this – whatever this was.

Orihime's heart was beating at a mile a minute. She wondered what he would think and if he would snap at her. Tentatively she raised her eyes and looked into his and her breath hitched. She had known that his eyes were green but she had no idea that they were so … _green._ They were unlike any eyes she'd ever seen. In fact they looked more like emerald chips and not eyes. On the back drop of his pale skin and pitch black hair, those sparkling jewels stood out. Completely overwhelmed by their magic, she stood rooted with her hand outstretched holding the flower.

Ulquiorra stood there as if bound by a spell. Staring into those honey-colored eyes he felt something unfamiliar stir in a deep and as yet unknown part within him. He was afraid to blink lest it broke the enchantment. It is said that eyes are the windows to a person's soul; if that was true then the person standing in front of him had an extremely beautiful soul.

Of its own accord his hand reached up to take the flower from her. The brief touch brought the two of them to their senses. Seeing the flower in his hand she beamed and said,

"Does this mean we are forgiven?"

Mutely he nodded.

"Thank you!" she trilled. She put the bag back on her shoulder, "See you in school tomorrow!"

As she started to retreat he realized he still didn't know her name. Before he could stop himself, he called out,

"Wait," she turned to face him "I … I don't know your name."

As she walked backwards she laughed that beautiful laugh of hers and said, "Orihime. Orihime Inoue."

Ulquiorra stood rooted as he watched the happy girl turn around and disappear from his field of vision.


	3. Chapter 3

I can't believe that people love this story so much. I'm actually very pleasantly surprised. I thank my reviewers, my beta and the new box of ffnet (that I think is a large contributor to the surge in reviews). Someone asked me about the update schedule of this fic, so here it is: expect updates mid-week, every week.

Beta: **Cerice Belle.**

* * *

**Chapter 3**

**PRESENT**

While Orihime was in the bathroom, Ulquiorra's imagination was on overdrive. It was busy draping her in a silky lime-green nightie with her wet hair left loose. In his mind's eye, he saw her pinned against a wall by his body as he licked beads of water off her neck. His control was already tenacious but now this image wreaked havoc on him.

_STOP! _Ulquiorra chided himself. What the hell was wrong with him? He was lusting after her like a lovesick teenager! Unfortunately with that admonishment, he remembered that dance from oh so long ago. It had been the moment he had realized that he loved her. He cherished that moment deeply, but right now, those memories were only adding fuel to a raging inferno. Taking his glasses off, he cupped his face in his hands and sighed deeply. He had to control his raging libido. The path he was on was unacceptable. This woman was the closest friend he had ever had; he couldn't risk ruining something so beautiful just because he was experiencing a hormonal surge.

Ulquiorra heaved an inaudible sigh of relief when Orihime came out of the bathroom in a baggy track- suit. But her flaming hair was left loose much to his disconcertion. She was humming a happy tune, oblivious to the predatory stare she was receiving from the other occupant of the room. She walked over to her bag, fished out a comb and moved in front of the mirror.

"So," Orihime asked as she brushed those luscious locks, completely unaware of the effect she was having on him, "You really are single?"

Ulquiorra swallowed, his throat had become completely dry. He wanted to run his hands along the flaming hair, just to check if they were as soft as they appeared.

"Ulquiorra, are you alright?" Orihime asked with a frown.

Startled he realized that he had been too busy fantasizing about her hair and hadn't heard a word of what she'd asked, "Sorry, what?"

"What's wrong with you?" she asked taking a couple of steps towards him.

_DON'T come closer!_ Ulquiorra thought vehemently. Aloud he said, "Nothing, you just caught me woolgathering."

She stopped in her tracks and said, "Hmm, well you did have that faraway look in your eyes."

"So what were you asking?" he pulled the quilt over himself to avoid any potentially embarrassing situation.

She started braiding her hair as she asked, "You really are single?"

"Yes, why?"

She shrugged, "Generally. I'm just really surprised, that's all."

"Well," he said leaning back on the headboard, using pillows as a support, "I did have a couple of affairs but nothing major."

Having finished braiding her hair, Orihime proceeded to moisturize her face and her arms. As she moved on to her feet, she caught Ulquiorra staring at her in the mirror. She turned to face him,

"What?"

While his face was inscrutable but his eyes sparkling with mirth, "You're such a girl!"

Narrowing her eyes she said, "Oh you just noticed?"

"I noticed it ages ago," he replied nonchalantly.

"What's that supposed to mean?" She asked.

"Nothing, just that you are really feminine," he explained, "more than most."

She pouted, "You say like that's a bad thing."

He shook his head, "It's not, that's just who you are."

Orihime nodded, "Just like being blunt is you."

"You're so good for my ego," Ulquiorra said sarcastically.

"Happy to help," Orihime chirped.

After a period of comfortable silence Ulquiorra asked, "So, how did you end up in psychiatry?"

Orihime bit her lip; she couldn't possibly tell him that the depression that had resulted from losing him had been the motivation. So she decided on a carefully worded half-truth, "Soon after a break-up, I went into depression. It took me a while to recover. That's what prompted me to help people," she had carefully avoided mentioning that he had been the cause of her break-up and subsequent depression.

He nodded.

"Please tell me that Aizen is no longer involved in your life," Orihime said snuggling under the covers of her bed.

"Oh didn't you hear?" he asked surprised.

"Hear what?" Orihime asked.

"He got arrested a couple of years ago, something about embezzling money from a trust fund. It was all over the news."

"Really?" Orihime's eyes widened, "Why don't I remember it?"

He shrugged, "How should I know?"

"That guy was such a creep though," Orihime said, remembering the two times she had had to meet the man, "I wonder what your parents saw in him to appoint him as the legal guardian."

"Well he _was_ a good lawyer, he knew the loop holes," Ulquiorra replied.

"Not good enough apparently, he got caught," Orihime retorted.

Ulquiorra chuckled softly as Orihime grinned. It was something that she always felt sad about. Ulquiorra didn't laugh enough. She noticed how the corners of his eyes crinkled slightly, that was new. But his laugh was beautiful. The transformation it wrought upon his face was something truly fascinating to watch. The rough edges of his face smoothed over, his near perpetual frown would go away and he would seem free. Although the changes were subtle and not easy to spot, but reading him had never been an issue for her.

"Umm," he was staring at her, "Why are you looking at me like that?"

Orihime blushed instantly and all the jitters that she'd managed to control while in the bathroom had come back in full force, "Sorry, I … I …"

Flustered she bit her lip and lowered her eyes. Ulquiorra's heart skipped a beat. She was sitting barely four feet away from him, looking absolutely adorable. Beneath the quilt, his fist clutched the bed-sheet tightly as he stopped himself from going over and claiming her lips in a heated kiss. Did this woman have any idea just how incredibly sexy and alluring she was? He took his glasses off and rubbed his eyes trying to focus and wipe away the images his mind was stubbornly presenting to him.

Seeing her chance to jump on to safer topics, Orihime seized it at once, "When did you get glasses?"

Suppressing a relieved sigh, he replied, "Some five years ago. Nel was very upset."

Orihime giggled thinking about the vivacious, lovely but slightly eccentric woman, "Ooh must not have been a pretty scene, but why though?"

"Well she thought I looked like a history professor. Apparently now I look a lot like Uryuu Ishida," he added wryly.

Orihime burst out laughing, "You know what's funny? Uryuu is really a history professor!"

"Really?" Ulquiorra shook his head, "Figures."

"But seriously, just the resemblance to Uryuu, which I don't see by the way, can't be the only reason she was upset?" Orihime said leaning on the headrest.

Outside the wind howled loudly causing both of them to start slightly.

After a couple of seconds, Ulquiorra said, "No, that wasn't the only reason. She also thought that I didn't look, and I'm quoting her verbatim here, 'hot enough'," he finished dryly.

"What nonsense," Orihime said laughing, "I think you look pretty hot in those glasses."

Ulquiorra raised an eyebrow, "Thank you … I guess."

Orihime gave an awkward grin and looked away. What was wrong with her? She sounded like a promiscuous woman. Normally, she kept these thoughts to herself. But something about Ulquiorra was making her speak her thoughts aloud, completely bypassing every filter. She didn't need her degree in psychiatry to know that this was a very dangerous situation. Goodness knew what she would blurt out if left unchecked.

Suddenly a bright light flashed outside followed quickly by a loud crack.

"Great," Ulquiorra muttered dryly, "Now we have a thunder storm! The ice on the road isn't going to melt anytime soon. We'd be lucky if any flights take off tomorrow as well. I hope you … Orihime?"

Ulquiorra frowned. Orihime was sitting on her bed with a strange look on her face.

"Orihime?" he called a little louder.

With a start she turned to look at him, as if only realizing that he was in the room, "Sorry," she whispered, "thunder-storms take me back to that night."

Without being told Ulquiorra knew she was referring to the night Sora had died. "How did it happen?" he asked gently.

She sighed deeply, "As a treat for landing the new job as an apprentice with a renowned psychiatrist and for completing my degree, Sora took me to a nature trail. We left on a Friday, complete with tents and walking equipment. We were to sleep under the stars on Saturday and head back on Sunday. That Saturday was one of the best days I've had in my life. When we left the trail that morning, the sky had become overcast," after a brief pause, she continued, "Approximately 150 miles from home, the thunderstorm started. It was nothing much at first, just a drizzle and a bit of hail. But soon, it got very bad. It started to rain heavily and visibility had reduced to less than fifty feet. We didn't even see the deer until it was too late. It had probably just wandered in from the woods nearby but it stood there, completely frozen. Sora swiveled sharply to save the deer but the car spun out of control."

At this point her voice quivered slightly but she continued, "The car spun several times before it hit the embankment and came to a stop. I remember a blinding pain in my head. The next thing I remember is looking at the windshield and thinking that it had broken in a beautiful pattern. It was a while before it occurred to me that the embankment had hit the car on the driver's side."

Orihime could not continue as her tears choked her.

"I see," he said softly.

She sniffled slightly and wiped her tears, "Sorry, I still get a little upset about it."

"It's natural," he replied.

They sat in companionable silence, which was punctuated by a sniffle or two by Orihime at irregular intervals. Ulquiorra had never been the type who'd offer a shoulder, but Orihime knew that he was listening intently. He wouldn't offer her shallow words like 'Sora was in a better place' or 'things will be alright'. He would let her cry and her deal with her grief in her own way. This was exactly what she had looked for after the accident; his calm and quiet presence that assured her that he was there when needed.

After a while, he spoke, "Why haven't you gotten professional help to get over your fear of driving?"

Through the residual tears Orihime grinned, "Ever heard of the phrase 'doctors make the worst patients'? I imagine I'd drive my psychiatrist up the wall."

"Yeah, I can definitely see that happening," he retorted.

Wiping away the last of her tears, Orihime playfully stuck her tongue out at him.

"Who have you stayed in touch with?" she asked after a while.

"All of those jerks from my little group," he replied.

"Huh? That's strange! I remember that no one in your group knew where you'd disappeared to?"

"Yes. I got back in touch with them a couple of years ago," he replied casually.

With a smile she asked, "How did you get their contacts?"

"Grimmjow had them," he answered.

"I see," her face fell.

Although she hadn't said much, he knew she was hurt. "Look …" he started.

"It's alright Ulquiorra," she said in an overly cheery tone, "It's absolutely alright. I'm sorry to intrude upon you."

Cringing on the inside he said, "It isn't like you think it is."

"Really?" her narrowed eyes were flashing, "Then what is it like, please explain it to me? Because from where I'm seeing, it appears exactly like I said. You obviously wanted to have nothing to do with me and thus chose to stay away from me. "

"No, you're mistaken," he said softly.

"Do … Do you have any idea …" Orihime paused in mid-sentence and looked away.

"Do I have any idea about what?" Ulquiorra probed.

"Nothing," she retorted shortly, "Forget it."

She grabbed the remote and with unnecessary force switched the TV on. Clenching his jaw in frustration he got off his bed and snatched the remote from her hand and turned the TV off.

"We're not done here!" he snapped.

"Oh yes we are," she replied smoothly, "In fact as soon as we get to the airport, things will get back to being as they were. I hate to impose my company upon anyone."

He closed his eyes to control his conflicting emotions. He was torn between the desire to scream at her for not listening to him and the urge to take her into his arms, kiss her and tell her that he didn't want her gone.

Finally he spoke in composed tones, "Orihime, I … I didn't keep in touch with you and you have every right to be angry. However, it was more owing to circumstances and not because I didn't want to stay in touch with you."

"Don't lie, please," she said, looking obviously hurt, "At the very least I deserve the truth don't you think?"

He contemplated just how much of the truth could he really tell her? He tried to formulate the words but nothing came. Other than him, only Grimmjow knew it and it had been extremely difficult for Ulquiorra to tell him. It was impossible to tell her the truth. He intended to carry that little secret to his grave. So, instead of replying, he turned and switched the TV on. The wounded look on her face twisted something inside him painfully, almost suffocating him. Without any further words he sat on his bed.

Orihime quietly lay down on her bed and turned away from him. The realization that Ulquiorra had deliberately kept away from her was extremely painful. Had she been so naïve so as to not realize that her company had been unwanted? Looking back at their lives, she realized that she had always been the one who had reached out for him. He had merely tolerated her for some reason. She was annoyed at herself for never pausing to think that maybe her company was unwelcome. Why hadn't she ever thought that maybe the reason Ulquiorra hadn't kept in touch with her was because he didn't want to?

Instantly, her mind showed her images from that party all those years ago, when they had danced hidden away from everyone's eyes. That dance should have told her how she felt, but for some inexplicable reason, she hadn't realized it. Even now, that dance had the capability to tingle her skin. Had she imagined it all? Had she suffered in vain? Had her heart-break and subsequent depression been useless? Were the most cherished memories of her life a lie? Silently she vowed that she wouldn't cry, not in his presence. So staying firmly turned away from him she shut her eyes, trying to drown out the noise of the TV. She didn't realize when she fell asleep.

Ulquiorra spent the night sitting on the bed, wondering how he could make her realize just how much she meant to him. He knew he couldn't tell her the truth. However he had to make it up to her. In the ten years that he'd spent away from her, he had never been as happy as he had been with her. Somehow he'd convinced himself that he had probably imagined the contentment he felt around her but this chance meeting proved otherwise. She truly brightened his day, just by being herself. All their lives, it had been her who'd reached out to him, but now it was his turn. He had to prove to her that she was one of the most precious people to him and now that he had found her yet again, he would fight tooth and nail to keep her in his life.


	4. Chapter 4

I've started a forum that is a journal of sorts. It would inform people about updates. You can also drop in queries and suggestions and just about anything else that you want to say to me. The link is on my profile. Do join.

Also, special thanks to **Kornluv44, Darisy, Cerice Belle, LuluMonk, Nicole Tsukiyomi, TheCatWithTheHat, Cherryvampiress, Xtremefairy, Rin Sessys Girl, Ulquihime 7980, Kohryu, AkuRokuTurkTrainee, guest 1, Adultswim12, aryaputra, lovely, Szerion, Spirit of the Damned, Ichiruki27, Guest 2, guest 3, Ati-Cha, lovely-smile, Anon, randomfan17, Sakura's fire, MontesiaKurosaki6, ****topamgagktheretopangagk, LittleMargarita** for their lovely reviews.

Beta **Cerice Belle**

* * *

**Chapter 4**

**PAST**

Ulquiorra's eyes flew open and he panted heavily. The illuminated digital display of the clock next to his bed told him that it was 3:17am. He sighed; what a godforsaken time to get up! He knew from experience that it was useless to try and go back to sleep. Once he had woken up from his recurring nightmare, he could never go back to sleep again. Not wanting to waste time and effort behind a futile action, he pushed the cover and got off the bed. He walked out of the bedroom, down the staircase and went over to the kitchen; he opened the fridge and peered into it dispassionately. A piece of apple pie caught his eyes. Using his body to keep the fridge door open, he got the pie out and walked over to the living room. Flopping down on the sofa he switched the TV on and surfed through the channels. The choices available to him were a mindless action movie, the re-run of a soap opera, an F1 race and a documentary about African Lions.

He settled for the documentary as he ate the pie disinterestedly with his left hand since his right hand was in a plaster, and being right handed, it was not an easy task. He hated when he had to spend his nights like this. The frequency of the nightmares had reduced and there were days where he actually got a full eight hours of uninterrupted sleep. However, tonight was not one of those nights. Tonight he would sit around in front of the TV, watching boring programs and then ultimately see the Sun rise. Tomorrow he would be sleepy, irritable and most likely bite Grimmjow's head off when the blue-haired idiot said something flippant. Just thinking about it was enough to annoy him.

As he watched one of the lionesses take her cubs out for a hunting lesson, he thought back to the auburn haired girl who had given him the flower and his eyes narrowed. Just what was the girl up to? Why had she given him the flower? Years of being alone coupled with a deep ingrained mistrust for people in general, made him think that she had to have some sort of nefarious plan. In his experience no one was kind to someone just because.

He gave an annoyed tsk. The girl and her intentions were a mystery to him, one that he couldn't solve. What a bother! What exactly was this irritatingly happy, scatterbrained girl playing at? Was she perhaps hoping to gain something out of it? But what could she possibly want from him? Had she been one of those irksome girls who kept trying to catch his attention, he may have been able to understand. But before that morning, the two of them were barely aware of each other's existence. Maybe he was overthinking and was crediting this girl with more intelligence than she merited, who knew what went on inside that erratic brain? He decided that to spend any further thought on her was a waste of time. He had conveniently ignored the fact that he had kept her flower in one of his favorite books.

"Master Ulquiorra?" a tired voice sounded from behind him.

He twisted his torso around to see his plump housekeeper Hana standing at the foot of the stairs, looking exhausted.

"Hana," he acknowledged.

"You're up again?" she asked.

"Couldn't sleep," he replied with a shrug.

"Do you need something?" she queried.

"No, you go back to sleep," there was no reason to disrupt someone else's sleep just because he was having a sleepless night.

With a shrug Hana turned around and walked away. That was to be expected. Hana was just his housekeeper. The clique of servants that he had couldn't possibly fill up the void that was within him which resulted from losing his family. True there was Aizen, but he was just there so that child-services wouldn't come barging in. The two of them were perfectly content with ignoring each other. For Ulquiorra, it was like living under the same roof with a bunch of strangers.

* * *

In the morning Orihime sat at her desk, talking to her friends, but she was distracted. Her eyes kept flickering over to the door. She was waiting for Ulquiorra to show up. She didn't know why but she was looking forward to seeing him again. Last evening, when he had reluctantly asked her name, she had a feeling that they should be friends. But knowing his reputation, she knew it was not going to be an easy task but she'd made up her mind. She wanted to know more about the person who hid behind that tough, rude exterior.

The classroom was slowly filling up but there was no sign of Ulquiorra. Orihime gently bit her lip as the bell signaled the start of the class and he still hadn't shown up. Just as she was about to give up hope of him coming, Ulquiorra and Mr. Kyoraku walked in together. The teacher was enthusiastically explaining something to the black-haired student who seemed to be listening without a trace of expression.

However Orihime noticed that he was clenching and unclenching his right hand. She figured his hand was probably hurting him but the discomfort never showed on his face. As she watched Ulquiorra replied something that caused Mr Kyoraku to erupt in laughter. With a hearty chuckle Mr Kyoraku clapped the student on his back and asked him to move to his bench. With a small nod Ulquiorra turned and started to walk to his seat. As he walked past her, their eyes met and Orihime smiled at him. He ignored her and continued walking. She was unsurprised. The entire group was known for their general unpleasantness and Ulquiorra was especially renowned to be the social pariah. She didn't dwell on his behavior.

* * *

Orihime walked into the library to research her history assignment for Mr. Urahara after successfully dodging her lesbian friend Chizuru. Although she wanted to be a doctor and had therefore mostly chosen science papers, she had been unable to pass up on history. She loved history and enjoyed the assignments. Her partner, Keigo, was held back for a detention so she had decided to do the research herself. She walked over to the history section and browsed through the selection. After a quick search, she found the books she had been looking for. Stacking them on her arm, she started to look for a table to sit. The library was fairly empty but her eyes found one particular table at the corner. A lone person sat hunched over some books, absently scratching the plaster on his right hand. With a smile Orihime walked over to the table.

"May I have a seat?" she asked sweetly.

He looked up and blinked, "Why?"

"I can't really do my research standing, can I?" she said with a smile.

"I mean why here?" he clarified, "There isn't any dearth of places to sit."

Orihime dumped her books on the table and sat down on the chair facing him, "True, but I wanted to sit here."

"Apparently," he replied shortly.

"How did you break your hand?"

He resisted the urge to roll his eyes, "I don't see why that is any of your business!"

"Yeah you're right," she seemed completely unperturbed by his terseness, "It really is none of my business. But you know what? I know how annoying these plasters can be. I broke my leg once and it was no fun. The pain, the itch ugh! Enough to drive you nuts, isn't it?"

Ulquiorra was staring at her as if she was insane, "Have you forgotten you are in a library? Shut up and do your work and let me do mine!"

"Oops!" she snickered behind her hand and said, "Sorry, I had forgotten this was a library. I'll shut up now. Shhh!" she had a finger on her lip to emphasize her point.

Ulquiorra shook his head and resumed his work. Suddenly he became aware of the itch in his right hand. He had forgotten it momentarily while the girl had been chatting but in the silence it had reared its ugly head again. He was scratching the plaster and getting increasingly edgy when suddenly a metal ruler was pushed into his view. Beneath the ruler was a folded slip of paper. Frowning he looked up and the girl indicated the paper with her chin and smiled. Still frowning he picked up the chit, it read:

_Use the ruler to scratch. Jam it between the plaster and skin. _

The hastily scrawled note ended with a crudely drawn smiley. He looked from the paper to Orihime who nodded encouragingly. It was worth a shot. So he picked up the ruler and held his right hand at an angle. Gently he managed to wedge the ruler between the plaster and his skin. He was hopeful, this might just work! Slowly he pushed the ruler further and further until finally he reached the place. Ulquiorra sighed in relief as he finally managed to scratch the persistent itch that had bothered him since yesterday. Pulling the ruler out he shoved it in her direction and nodded. She smiled pleasantly and mouthed 'Welcome!'

The girl lowered her head and started reading one of the many books she'd had in front of her. Ulquiorra leaned back on his chair, resting it on its hind legs and studied her unabashedly. She was pleasant enough to look at, he had to admit. He was a healthy teenaged male, how could he not notice the delicate features, the beautiful auburn tresses or the full figure? But looks had never been the yardstick by which he judged people. Good looking people could be complete assholes, a fact exemplified by his 'guardian', Sousuke Aizen.

"I thought you wanted to do your work?"

Despite the fact that she hadn't lifted her head, Ulquiorra knew that she was grinning. He sat up straight causing the chair to rest on all four of its leg with a loud bang.

"Shhh!" The librarian, Yoruichi Shihoin frowned at him.

Ulquiorra frowned back. Completely unperturbed by the reprimand he leaned on the table, "What exactly are you playing at?"

Orihime's head snapped up, "You were the one checking me out and I'm the one who's playing at something?"

"I wasn't checking you out," Ulquiorra replied automatically, although he knew that that's exactly what he had been doing.

"Really? I must've been imagining things then," she said sarcastically.

Ulquiorra was about to respond when Miss Yoruichi, who had walked over to their desk, sternly said, "If the two of you can't keep your voices down, I'll have to throw you out!"

"Oh, sorry!" Orihime said sweetly, "We'll stay quiet."

As soon as the librarian moved away, Ulquiorra whispered rather furiously, "You _are_ kind of stalking me, so I had to ask."

"Oh please!" Orihime whispered back, "Get over yourself! You think you are some sort of hunk that girls are tripping over themselves to get to? Well newsflash! You are not! You are short, pale, rude, and have an ego the size of Trafalgar Square and are desperately in need of a haircut! Me stalking you? In your dreams!"

While staring daggers at each other, neither realized that Miss Yoruichi had come over to the desk again, "That's it! You two, out! NOW!"

"Yeah," Ulquiorra muttered slamming his book, "I think I prefer fresh air to current company."

"Be careful, it's cold outside! You may fly, what with all the hot air in your head!" Orihime retorted as she gathered her stuff.

Ulquiorra whirled around, his eyes narrowing dangerously, "Watch it carrot-top, I'm warning you!"

Orihime looked him straight in the eye and flicked her head towards the door of the library. The two furious teens marched out. As soon as they were out, Orihime said, "You don't scare me with your macho act, you pint sized midget!"

"Get lost!" Ulquiorra growled, "Get lost before I seriously do something!"

"Why should I get lost? You are the one getting your panties in a twist. You can always turn around and walk away!" Orihime snapped.

Two bright spots of red had appeared on her cheeks which Ulquiorra found pretty endearing, despite the fact that he found the person unbearable, "And give you the satisfaction of a victory over me? No can do."

She crossed her arms in front of her and retorted, "Well, then we are at an impasse, huh?"

Hazel and emerald were locked fierce staring contest. The two of them stood outside the library, staring daggers at each other, unblinking. No one was willing to give the other even the slightest leeway. They would've continued to be locked in the staring match but for Tatsuki who called her friend causing her to blink.

The tiniest of smirks graced Ulquiorra's lips as he bent down slightly and whispered, "I win carrot-top."

Without waiting for a response from her, he spun and walked away. Orihime let out a frustrated shout.

"What's going on?" Tatsuki asked perplexed.

"Ulquiorra Schiffer is a grade - A jerk, that's what is going on!" Orihime snapped.

"Is he bugging you?" Tatsuki asked staring after Ulquiorra's retreating back, "Cause if he is, I'm gonna kick his butt to kingdom come!"

Orihime smiled at her friend, "Relax. I can handle him."

* * *

Yoruichi Shihoin watched as the two girls walked away, chattering excitedly.

"What do you think?"

She wasn't really surprised to find her fiancé Kisuke Urahara standing behind her. He came into the library often enough.

"What do I think about what?" she asked crossing her arms in front of her.

"Those two," Kisukie said grinning, "think they'll fall for each other?"

"No, not a chance!" Yoruichi said firmly, "I happen to know that Inoue likes Kurosaki. Besides, Schiffer is too … cold for someone as bright and vibrant like her."

Kisuke grinned, "Aah but my dear, haven't you heard? Opposites attract. I don't think there are two people in the school who are as diametrically opposed as those two."

"That maybe so, but I still don't see that happening," she replied.

"Fine, let's have a bet; loser does whatever winner asks them to do. I say they'll be dating each other within three months," he said enthusiastically.

"Just so you know I'm not doing a strip tease," Yoruichi replied with a small smile.

"Awww, you just took away the fun from the bet," he replied in mock offended tones.

"Three months," she said to seal the deal.

* * *

Orihime sat on the school roof, enjoying the way the breeze gently blew her hair. Most of her friends had some class or other but she had a free. Normally she'd have gone to the library but having been kicked out earlier, she had no desire to go there again. So she sat on the ledge, enjoying the quiet time. In spite of what she had told Tatsuki, she had actually enjoyed the fight with Ulquiorra. For some reason it had been fun to see him ruffled. She had actually gotten an expression on the famous poker-face and she was thrilled to bits about it.

She thought back to her comment about Ulquiorra's appearance and smiled. Well he was short and pale and his hair was indeed long but somehow the whole package was fairly attractive. When he'd called her 'carrot top', she hadn't found it offensive, in spite of the fact that she had some very traumatic memories associated with that word. Somehow, he calling her 'carrot top' had been more like the fond teasing of a friend than as an insult leveled at her by bullies. But all of this did not discount the fact that he did indeed have the ego the size of Trafalgar Square; although why she had thought of that exact place and not something closer home, she had no idea. All in all, Ulquiorra Schiffer was interesting, very interesting.

Although, not more than the person who had her heart. She had been introduced to Ichigo by Tatsuki when they were in the fifth grade. One glance at the scowling face of the boy who at that time hated all girls except Tatsuki, and Orihime had fallen for him. She hadn't realized it then, but as they started to grow up, she began to dream about spending evenings on the beach holding his hand and watching the sunset.

A loud bell snapped her out of her reverie and she jumped up. Brushing her skirt she started down the stairs to meet up with her friends and head home. Fate however had other plans.

* * *

Fate intervened in the form of Mr. Urahara. Orihime was walking towards the exit of the school building chatting animatedly with Rukia, Tatskui and Chizuru when a voice rang out.

"Aah Orihime Inoue, just the person I was looking for!" Mr. Urahara came over and smiled brightly.

Orihime blinked at her tall teacher stupidly, "Me?"

"Yes indeed," he enthused, "I need to ask a personal favor from you."

"Ummm yeah?" she asked uncertainly. Behind her, her friends exchanged curious glances.

"You see, I'm doing a PhD," he replied looking like a lost puppy, "I borrowed a book from someone because I needed some reference. But you see, he needs the book back. I still have about six pages I need to copy but I'm out of time and I have to run an errand for Mr. Yamamoto."

Orihime was totally confused, "I'm sorry but I don't understand, how can I help you?"

"Can you please copy them for me?" he looked so pathetic that she actually felt sad for him.

"Alright," she replied with an unsure smile, "I'll copy them for you."

"Thank you!" he answered delightedly and then looking at her friends he said "Run along girls. Go home, have some snacks, have fun!"

The three girls were nonplussed as they watched Mr. Urahara lead a very confused Orihime away.

"What the hell was that?" Rukia asked

"No clue," Chizuru replied.

"Why can't he use a copier machine?" Tatsuki wondered.

"Who knows?" Rukia answered.

* * *

Mr. Urahara had handed her a piece of paper and a key explaining where exactly she would find the book. The paper had the page numbers and paragraph numbers that she had to copy. He had asked her to use the A4 size sheets that she would find on the top left hand drawer of his table that she could unlock with the key. After that he had all but run away.

Completely bewildered Orihime walked over to his office that he shared with Mr. Ukitake. Peering in, she saw that Mr. Ukitake wasn't in. However the office wasn't empty. On Mr. Urahara's chair, with his hands dangling on either side, taking a nap, sat Ulquiorra Schiffer.

* * *

**Edit 08/02/12: **Thanks to Crono for pointing out the use of the word 'chit', I've changed them.


	5. Chapter 5

As some of you may be aware, I am visiting family from the 18th to 25th. There would be no updates during that time. There will most likely be one more update of this fic before I leave and one update from Angels & Demons. Update from Trust to Hope will be only after I return (well it IS afterall a complex plot with complex characters. Takes me much longer to write.)

I thank my reviewers and all those who added this story as a favorite. As usual, read and review.

Beta **Cerice Belle**

* * *

**Chapter 5**

**PRESENT**

Orihime's sleep was interrupted by an unfamiliar beeping sound. Her eyes flickered open and she found herself staring at what was definitely not her bedroom's ceiling. In fact as her senses caught up she realized she wasn't even on her bed and that the beeping sound that had woken her up had stopped. After several minutes of disorientation, she remembered where she was and who was in the room with her. She sat bolt upright on her bed and looked around frantically. Ulquiorra was sitting on the other bed. He had his cell phone in his hand and his face was averted from her.

Orihime silently got off the bed, took her toiletries and clothes from her bag and walked over to the bathroom. Ulquiorra sat unmoving. She freshened up, changed and walked out. Without a word, Ulquiorra got off his bed, took his stuff and went into the bathroom. Last night Orihime had felt betrayed and was deeply hurt. But sleep had brought clarity to her making her think that maybe she had overreacted. Ulquiorra had tried to tell her something and she had downright accused him of lying, not even giving him the chance to explain himself. It was unfair of her to think that she meant nothing to Ulquiorra because he wasn't one to pretend. If he didn't care for her, he would bluntly tell that to her face. He wasn't one to merely tolerate someone. But never once had he made her feel that she was unwelcome, so maybe there was some other reason that he hadn't kept in touch.

That gave rise to another horrific thought. What if he had figured out her true feelings? She may not have realized them herself but Ulquiorra was nothing if not astute. Maybe he had understood that his friend had developed deeper feelings for him, something he didn't reciprocate? Orihime bit her lower lip in embarrassment. That would be disastrous!

The click of the lock of the bathroom door snapped her out of her thoughts. She stood up and opened her mouth to say something but the closed expression on his face stopped her. Most wouldn't even perceive it but Orihime knew that Ulquiorra was in a black mood. She knew from experience that this wasn't the time that she should say anything to him. She decided that she would speak to him only when he spoke.

Silently Ulquiorra packed his clothes, zipped his trolley and hefted it. Wordlessly Orihime followed suit. Together they stepped out. Although it was a little past seven in the morning, the Sun hadn't risen yet. The storm, however, had abated. He handed over the key-cards to the desk and walked out. Orihime followed him silently, stepping over the ice gingerly. Unfortunately the car had a layer of ice that had frozen the doors shut. Ulquiorra swore under his breath, left his luggage near her feet and walked back in the hotel. Soon he came out with a bottle of antifreeze that he put on both the driver and the passenger doors. With some difficulty they finally managed to pry the doors open. They dumped their luggage on the back seat and took their own seats.

As they began to pull out of the parking lot, the horizon had started to show the first signs of dawn. The silence still hanging heavily between them, they drove over to the airport. He returned the car to the rental and together they reached the security line that separated the terminals.

"See you later," was all Ulquiorra said before marching over to the security gate of Terminal 3.

All her former insecurities returned as Orihime slowly made her way to the security gate of Terminal 1.

* * *

Ulquiorra sat on a chair in the airport, his mind on a woman who was sitting in Terminal 1. Back at the hotel she had looked like she was about to say something. Knowing Orihime, she had most likely managed to twist the events in her mind such that now she was the one who was responsible for him not keeping in touch with her. One look at her face and he had known that she'd found a way to blame herself and that had made him furious. Why did she have to be so hard on herself? It was completely his fault for not keeping in touch with her, so he should be the one apologizing. He wouldn't allow her to apologize for his mistakes.

So he had chosen to stay silent, knowing full well that the moment he started speaking, she would start telling him how sorry she was. He wasn't going to give her that chance, so he wasn't going to say a word to her. But it was easier said than done. It had taken all of his considerable self-control to stop himself from pulling her into his arms and murmur long and deep apologies into her hair. It hadn't helped that she looked absolutely gorgeous in the yellow pull over and black trousers that she'd worn. He had desperately wanted to comfort her in the car when he had seen her deep fear dancing on her face.

She had looked downright sad when he had left her at the security gate. He had originally planned to say nothing before leaving but he had been unable to stop himself from reassuring her that this wasn't the last time they were seeing each other.

He yearned to go over to Terminal 1 and find her. He wanted to tell her that he had never stopped caring for her. But it would have to wait. Words weren't enough; he would have to show her, somehow. He would have to show her that he remembered every moment spent with her. So, despite his every instinct screaming at him to run to Terminal 1, he stayed put. He didn't even pull out his laptop as he remained seated on a cramped chair since his mind was so occupied with a certain auburn-haired woman.

Lost in Orihime's thoughts, time flew quickly and before he knew it was time for his flight to take off. Although it had taken five hours but the Sun and the airport authorities had managed to clear the runway off the ice. With a huff Ulquiorra stood up and joined the line of passengers.

* * *

Two days later, Grimmjow was sitting in the classy, modern, duplex apartment that belonged to Ulquiorra. Except his books, he had let go of everything that reminded him of his old life; his father's business, his old house, the furniture and the servants. With that money he had started a new venture of his own and had bought a new apartment. Given his history, Grimmjow had thought Ulquiorra would never return to Karakura and honestly, who could blame him? This town had taken a lot from him; his family, his peace and his love. So it had been a pleasant surprise to him when Ulquiorra had decided to move his base of operations to Karakura.

Grimmjow was surfing through the channels of the 43" flat screen TV when Ulquiorra walked in with two steaming cups of coffee; Mocha for his guest and a black coffee for himself.

"So," Grimmjow said after a couple of sips, "what's so urgent that I had to come all the way here in this shitty weather?"

Ulquiorra looked out the window at the swirling snow and said, "Yes, the weather is bad."

"Thanks for noticing," Grimmjow said sarcastically, "Nel would have an aneurism if she knew I was out driving in this shit, so whatever it is, it better be fucking good!"

"I met Orihime again," Ulquiorra said simply.

Grimmjow sputtered into his cup and as a result some coffee went up his nose. After a bout of coughing violently, he wiped tears from his eyes and said in a hoarse voice, "What?"

"From your reaction I would think you heard me pretty clearly," Ulquiorra retorted nonchalantly.

"Bloody asshole!" Grimmjow said still breathing heavy from coughing, "Don't talk like this means nothing to you! I … Fuck I don't even know what to say! How did you meet her?"

Ulquiorra took a long sip from his coffee and said, "At the airport, purely by chance."

"And…?"

Ulquiorra raised a brow, "And what?"

"Don't play dumb, jackass!" the blue-haired man was sitting on the edge of the couch, "What happened when you met her?"

"Well," Ulquiorra said leaning back on his couch, "We met, we talked, spend the night at a hotel and now we are back in Karakura."

"Whoa! Back up, back up! You spend the night at a hotel?" Grimmjow's eyes grew large as saucers.

"Yes, but not the way you're thinking," the emerald-eyed man clarified.

"Fuck man, you're milking this for all it's worth! Tell me the details!"

The black haired man sighed, "We were in the hotel because all flights were cancelled. We simply caught up with each other. We just talked, nothing more."

Grimmjow leaned back on the couch, "So? What now?"

"That's why you're here," Ulquiorra said, "She's mad at me for not keeping in touch with her for ten years."

"Wonder why?" his friend muttered wryly.

Ignoring his comment, Ulquiorra continued, "So now you have to tell me, how do I apologize to her?"

"What makes you think I can help?" the blue-haired man asked.

"You've been in a relationship for almost eleven years," Ulquiorra intoned flatly.

"You're not a fucking virgin dude!" Grimmjow snapped, "You've handled girls before, think for yourself!"

"'Handled?' Women are not objects to be 'handled'."

"Yeah, yeah, you know that's not what I fucking meant," the larger man waved a hand dismissively, "the point is, you should know what to do."

Ulquiorra sighed, "If I knew, I wouldn't have called you here."

The blue haired man grinned slyly, "If you want my help, you have to say so Ulquiorra. You have to use the magic word!"

The emerald eyes narrowed as he studied the man who sat grinning like the Cheshire cat. "Fine! Please help me."

Grimmjow's smile disappeared as he suddenly became serious, "Fuck man, you must really care for her. I have never heard you say the words 'please' and 'help', forget about using them in the same sentence."

Ulquiorra remained silent.

"Well, have you tried the obvious?" Grimmjow asked.

"Which would be?"

"Send her flowers of course!" Grimmjow answered.

Of course! How had he not thought of something so simple? "No I haven't," Ulquiorra admitted, "I don't know why, but I just didn't think of it."

"Be careful, Ulquiorra," Grimmjow almost never called him by his name so he knew that the blue-haired man was dead serious, "Don't fall for her again."

"Grimmjow," Ulquiorra replied with equal seriousness, "she means a lot to me but I don't love her. I did once, but not anymore. "

Grimmjow leaned forward and placed his elbows on his knees, holding his cup in both hands, "When you love someone once, you love them forever. You just don't stop loving someone just because they are not in your life anymore. You may not love her with the same intensity as you did ten years ago but that doesn't mean you've stopped loving her. That just doesn't happen."

The use of his name and marked lack of expletives told Ulquiorra just how serious Grimmjow was. Ulquiorra nodded, knowing full well that his friend had very valid fears. He already felt dangerously drawn to her, plus he cared deeply about her. He was really treading on thin ice here. He sipped on his coffee and promised to himself that he wouldn't let himself go through the same pain again.

But that didn't mean that he could ignore the fact that he wanted her back in his life. So now the only thing that he could do was apologize to her and if she agreed, stay friends.

* * *

It had been three days since Orihime had returned to Karakura. These three days had been horrible for her as she spent it oscillating between being angry at Ulquiorra and doubting herself. She was angry at him for not keeping in touch for all these years but couldn't help doubting herself. She couldn't make up her mind as to whether or not she was the one at fault. She knew she had the bad habit of shouldering blame even when it was not her fault. But the problem was, somehow, it always seemed like her fault; and she was never certain if it was really her fault or not.

Torn between conflicting emotions, Orihime hadn't slept too well since returning. Added to that was the back-log that she was working very hard to clear, plus, because of the chilly weather, she had caught a cold. All in all, Orihime was not in the best of moods that day as she finished her paper work at around 8pm. Her suite was in an indoor medical plaza which she shared with another psychiatrist, a dentist, a cardiologist and a pathology lab.

Asking her assistant to lock up, Orihime put on her coat, gloves and cap. The snow continued to fall unabated much to her annoyance. She stepped out and started walking towards the elevator, her heels clicking on the marble floor. As she neared the elevator, she suppressed a groan. Standing at the elevator, grinning broadly was the cardiologist Dr. Shinji Hirako. He had been pursuing Orihime doggedly for a little over two years. Two years ago, just for the sake of politeness, she had accepted to go out with him for a date. He had been pestering her for the second date since then.

"Dr. Inoue!" he intoned enthusiastically, "how utterly delightful to see you!"

"Dr. Hirako," she acknowledged.

Orihime tapped the floor with her foot to indicate her impatience as she waited for the elevator, but the implied message was lost on the cardiologist.

"I haven't seen you in a while," he said flashing his toothy grin at her.

"Yes," she replied civilly, "I have been away."

"What are you doing for the weekend?" he asked as the elevator dinged. Much to her chagrin, the elevator was completely empty and therefore she was forced to spend a few seconds in his company in a confined space.

"I have plans, what about you?" she said to ward him off while keeping the conversation polite. She had no plans except perhaps to catch up on some sleep and try unsuccessfully to forget about Ulquiorra.

"I was hoping we could go to a movie together," Dr. Hirako said moving closer to her.

Orihime shirked away and said, "Sorry, some other time maybe?"

Fortunately the elevator dinged to a stop. Orihime fled out of the claustrophobic elevator as soon as she could. After saying a polite but hasty goodnight to the cardiologist, she ran out. It was extremely windy and bitingly cold and she had to hunch in order to walk the two blocks to her apartment. Despite layers of protection, when she finally reached her apartment, her extremities were numb. Shivering she fumbled through her bag and dug out her keys. Just as she was fitting the key into the lock the old woman living across her opened her door.

"Orihime," the woman said with a smile, "You have a package."

"Really?" she was puzzled.

"Yes, here," the woman held up a large box covered with brown paper.

"Huh?" Orihime blinked a couple of times. No one ever sent her packages, "Thank you so much Mrs. Gray. I owe you one."

"Nonsense," the elderly lady scoffed in a friendly way as Orihime collected the bulky package.

With some difficulty as she was balancing the brown paper package, Orihime opened the door of her two bedroom apartment. Once inside, she gingerly put the parcel on her coffee table. She quickly took off her gloves, cap and coat. Armed with an envelope cutter, she walked over to the box, eyeing it curiously. With quick, deft movements she cut the scotch tapes. With utmost care she unwrapped the brown paper only to find a box. She lifted the cover and gasped.

Inside the box were about fifty yellow gerberas. Her eyes fell on the envelope that was wedged in the flowers. Very gently she pulled out the envelope and opened it. It contained a card that was written in in very familiar handwriting. She read and reread the message a few times to be sure that the card did indeed say what she read. Very slowly she smiled. She shook her head gently, put the card back on the coffee table and went in for a shower. That night she slept peacefully, with a small smile playing on her lips.

The card read:

_Long ago someone gave me one of these flowers as an apology._

_It's my turn to apologize and what better way to do so than these?_

_Orihime, I am sorry._

_Ulquiorra._


	6. Chapter 6

With this I complete my schedule of updates before my hiatus. I'll resume writing on the 26th of this month.

Thanks for all the love you guys have shown to this story. I'm flattered.

Beta: Cerice Belle

* * *

**Chapter 6**

**PAST**

"What the …"

The feminine voice broke Ulquiorra's slumber. He blinked several times to clear the sleep from his eyes and managed to suppress his surprised gasp just in time. In front of him stood the last person he wanted to see at that moment, the very girl he had been having a rather disturbing dream about. For some reason, he had seen the ginger-haired girl standing amidst yellow flowers, laughing that ridiculously beautiful laugh of hers. As if that in itself hadn't been unsettling enough, he had even seen his dream-self approach the girl and run his index finger along her delicate jawline in a very non-Ulquiorra-ish way.

To wake up and find himself facing the real girl before he had had the chance to recover from his bizarre dream was very disconcerting. Therefore Ulquiorra opted for his best strategy of defense – offence.

"What the hell are you doing here?" he snapped.

"My question exactly," she retorted sharply.

"I was here first," he answered getting up from the chair.

"That doesn't make this office yours," she said striding in with confident steps.

"No, but it does give me the right to ask what are you doing here?"

"Maybe," she acknowledged with a shrug, "but the constitution gives me the right to ignore your question."

"What the fu …," Ulquiorra pinched the bridge of his nose trying to control his inner Grimmjow. "That doesn't even make sense!"

"Maybe not, but I just found out that the famous Ulquiorra Schiffer can swear! That's a revelation!" the grin on her face clearly said who'd won round 2.

With an irritated huff, Ulquiorra picked his bag from the floor and said, "Mr. Urahara wanted me to wait here, he said he wanted to talk to me about my assignment."

"Well he isn't coming anytime soon," Orihime said with a shrug, "he sent me here to copy some pages for his thesis. So now if you'll move from there, I need to get some pages out from that drawer."

Ulquiorra frowned. That was definitely odd. Urahara was anything but a fool, he couldn't have forgotten that he had asked Ulquiorra to wait in his office. So why had he asked Miss Scatterbrains to copy some damn pages for him? A frightening idea had just begun to take root in his mind when Carrot-top spoke again, "I hope you'll move sometime today?"

Giving her the iciest of his stares, he moved from Urahara's seat, walked around the table and plopped himself on the chair facing it.

"You're going to sit there?" she asked incredulously.

"Does it bother you your highness?" he asked in silky tones.

"Oh go to hell!" she snapped.

Save for the gleam in his eyes, there was no change in his expression but somehow Orihime knew he was laughing at her.

With narrowed eyes she said, "Don't you dare laugh at me!"

Ulquiorra blinked to contain his surprise. No one, not even Grimmjow had ever managed to do what this girl had just done. How had she known?

"What are you so surprised about?" she asked with a frown.

How was she doing this? She was reading him like an open book and he wasn't sure he liked it. Thoroughly rattled he decided that it was very unwise to stay in her company any longer. He slung his bag on his left shoulder.

"See you later, Carrot-top," he said with a nonchalance he didn't feel, "Enjoy copying pages. Oh and next time, feel free to ignore me and I'll extend the same courtesy."

"Please don't let my rapier wit stop you from sulking away. Feel free to go to your emo corner and brood all you want," she replied sweetly.

He rolled his eyes, "That was a pathetic comeback. Better luck next time."

Saying so, he turned on his heels and walked away. Inside the office, Orihime sat grumbling. No one had ever annoyed her as much as this guy. She didn't know what it was about him that bugged her so much but he irritated her to her core.

Unknown to both of them, Urahara was suppressing his giggles of pure glee having overheard the conversation.

* * *

For the next two days, Orihime ignored Ulquiorra and he seemed more than happy to return the favor. However, several times Orihime found her eyes moving over to him and on more than one occasion, she would meet the viridian stare of Ulquiorra Schiffer. His eyes did things to her. She couldn't quite describe what, but they unsettled her. They stirred something new within her, something unknown. If she had to compare the sensation to something, she'd say it was similar to dropping a great distance suddenly, much like being inside an elevator or atop a roller-coaster. And while she enjoyed being on a roller-coaster, she definitely did not enjoy it that a person could do that to her.

And on top of that, it was Ulquiorra Schiffer! He was the only person in the entire planet that annoyed her as much as he did. And that included Chizuru, the lesbian who groped her at every given chance. She had thought she would try and be friends with him, but it was impossible. The two couldn't stay in each other's company for longer than five seconds without wanting to strangle the other.

It was Mizuiro's birthday and he had promised the entire group that he would treat them to ice-cream. So after school, talking excitedly amongst themselves, their group headed to the ice-cream parlor. None of them noticed that another smaller group was also headed to the same place and was walking a few paces behind them. This was a mini miracle really, because the smaller group included Grimmjow and Nnoitra, both of whom were unnaturally quiet. The reason was that they were busy listening to songs on Grimmjow's new Ipod.

"… And then my dad proceeded to give me an embarrassing lecture about 'birds and bees'," Ichigo complained to Uryuu, "Why he thinks that is hilarious, I have no clue."

"Come on," Keigo whined, "I only wish that my old man told me something. Whatever I know is through books!"

Uryuu scoffed disdainfully, "Books? Please don't use that word to describe the trash you read. Books mean literature, what you read is porn."

"Just because you read weird things doesn't mean that what others read is not good," Keigo pouted.

"I'm not criticizing anyone else's choice of reading material, just yours," Uryuu retorted.

"Well," Keigo said enthusiastically, "I have tried to read one of your 'books'. I couldn't understand a word of it. What was it again? Metamortitis? Something about a man becoming a bug?"

"The Metamorphosis," Uryuu clarified, "unsurprising really. The literary elite have classified it as one of the greatest books and Kafka as one of the greatest authors. I have no doubts that you were utterly confused."

Keigo muttered a string of curses.

"Cut it out you two," Kojima drawled in a bored voice.

Seeing as everyone was distracted by Uryuu and Keigo's argument, Chizuru inched closer to Orihime to cop a feel. Tatsuki however was ever vigilant, twisting the red-head's hand away.

"Don't you get tired of getting your hand twisted?" Rukia asked.

"Someday! Someday Tatsuki won't be around and I will be united with my princess," Chizuru said excitedly, "She can't forever be in the way of true love."

"Orihime doesn't love you, you idiot," Tatsuki answered.

Chizuru was unfazed, "When she knows that no one can love her like I do, she'll love me."

"You're delusional!" Rukia said incredulously.

The subject of their conversation however was staring at the tall, orange-haired boy walking in front of them. Ichigo had a strange, mind numbing effect on her. Whenever he was around, Orihime found herself to be tongue-tied. Watching him was her addiction. All she wanted was for him to look at her. One smile from him was enough to melt her.

So lost was she in Ichigo that she was completely unmindful of where she was going. Consequently she had fallen behind her group. Completely mesmerized by Ichigo, Orihime didn't pay attention to where she was going and had stepped off of the pavement and right into the oncoming traffic. The loud honk of a pick-up truck made her realize that she was in its way but sheer panic froze her. Next thing she knew was that a strong hand grasped her arm and pulled her out of harm's way at the nick of time. The driver passed by, yelling obscenities at her. Calming her breathing she turned to thank her savior, only to find herself staring at the livid eyes of Ulquiorra Schiffer.

"You have a pair of perfectly functioning eyes and one brain that is capable of forming a coherent thought, use them!" he snapped.

No one had ever spoken to her in those tones. Irritation overshadowed gratitude as she snapped back, "Thanks for reminding me, I'd have never known if not for you!"

"If not for me, your friends here would've been scraping you, or whatever was left of you, off of the road using cutlery," he retorted sharply.

"So what do you want me to do?" she asked irately.

"A little caution and some gratitude would be nice," he replied acidly.

"If you want people to feel thankful, try not to be so high-handed," she snapped back.

"Orihime, what's going on?" Ichigo asked, frowning at Ulquiorra. Her entire group had noticed the two bickering and had come over to her aid.

"Nothing Ichigo," she responded shortly.

"Nothing?" Grimmjow growled. Ulquiorra's friends too had gathered around, "Schiffer here saved your pretty ass missy, and you say 'nothing'. Whatever the fuck happened to a thank you?"

"Watch your tone Jagerjaquez," Ichigo said threateningly.

"Or what jackass?" the blue-haired boy responded, cracking his knuckles threateningly "You wanna fight me?"

Realizing that the scene was fast escalating out of control, Orihime tried to diffuse it, "Ichigo, relax. Look Ulquiorra, I …"

"Can it Carrot-top," he drawled in a bored voice.

Without any further words, he shoved his left hand in his pocket and walked away. The rest of his friends too followed suit, with Grimmjow bumping against Ichigo deliberately.

"What's going on?" Tatsuki asked, eyeing the retreating group suspiciously, "Why is Ulquiorra Schiffer hovering around you?"

"He's bad news Hime, stay away from him," Rukia said.

To her intense surprise, Orihime found herself defending him to her friends, "He isn't hovering around me. He really did save me. And I don't think he's bad news."

"Oh but he is Princess," Chizuru said wide eyed, "Don't you know, he was the one who murdered his parents?"

Inexplicably, black fury rose within her and before she could stop herself she said, "The court found him innocent and freed him of all charges, please don't resort to such malicious rumors. It is very unkind!"

With that she walked away from her friends, leaving them confused. Nobody had ever seen Orihime so angry.

* * *

Seething in anger, Orihime walked on and on till she reached the park by the canal. With a huff she sat down on a bench and tried to calm herself. Slowly as the anger ebbed away, she paused to wonder, why had she gotten so angry in the first place? She had always hated it when people said malevolent things about others, but never had she felt so furious. It wasn't the first time that she'd heard someone speak about the scandal about Ulquiorra. She had heard it before. Everyone in the school knew about it.

It was about four years ago, when his parents had been found brutally murdered. Although she didn't know the details, she knew that Ulquiorra had been tried in the juvenile court but had been found innocent and therefore freed of all charges. However, for some reason, a lot of people in the school still liked to state it like it was fact. To them, he was guilty; the court's verdict didn't matter. Before she had known him, Orihime had never been a part of those conversations about him but now, she just couldn't stand by and let people say something so horrible about him. Ulquiorra Schiffer was a lot of things, but he was not a murderer.

Orihime stood up to leave. It was getting close to Sunset and this area wasn't safe. As she started to leave, her eyes fell on a figure that stood by the edge of the canal, looking at the setting Sun. Even though she couldn't see his face, she knew it was Ulquiorra. Seeing him she remembered she hadn't thanked him for saving her. She walked over to him.

"Ulquiorra," she said softly.

Without looking at her he said, "I was hoping you wouldn't see me."

Surprised she asked, "You knew I was here?"

"Your hair-color is kind of hard to miss," he replied matter-of-factly.

"What are you doing here?"

"I come here often to see the Sunset," he answered, "Although I assume you are here for reasons that have nothing do with Sunsets or this pointless conversation."

_And this is exactly the reason why I hate him,_ Orihime thought. Aloud she said, "I actually came to thank you for …"

"You're welcome," he replied without giving her the chance to finish.

Orihime seethed inside. He was a jerk through and through.

"Well, then I'll be going," she replied and started to walk. She had barely taken four paces when he called out.

"Carrot-top, wait. This part of the town isn't safe. Let me walk you home."

Orihime gaped as he turned and started walking towards her. She stood rooted as he walked past her. He took a few more steps before he realized that she wasn't following.

"I meant today," he called out.

"Oh sorry!" she said and started walking next to him, the now familiar feeling of weightlessness returning triumphantly.


	7. Chapter 7

Hello again friends, here I am again with a new update. I can't believe this story has already crossed 100 reviews. Honestly, genuinely, truly flattered. Thanks to all of you who have favorite my story or are following it. Special thanks to my reviewers

Kornluv44, Darisy, Cerice Belle, LuluMonk, Nicole Tsukiyomi, TheCatWithTheHat, Cherryvampiress, Xtremefairy, Rin Sessys Girl, Ulquihime 7980, Kohryu, AkuRokuTurkTrainee, guest 1, Adultswim12, aryaputra, lovely, Szerion, Spirit of the Damned, Ichiruki27, Guest 2, guest 3, Ati-Cha, lovely-smile, Anon, randomfan17, Sakura's fire, MontesiaKurosaki6, topamgagktheretopangagk, LittleMargarita, Fairyarah, crono, QueenAlexiel, im ur misconception, guest 4, AutumnSunshine, Zigra, I'llBiteYouToDeath

Beta Cerice Belle

News on other updates: I'm working on the next chapter Trust to Hope. I will try to put it up by the end of the long weekend. Next chapter of Loved You Twice Over should follow that and then I will work on Angels & Demons.

* * *

**Chapter 7**

**PRESENT**

Pleasant warmth nestled within Orihime. Even the bad weather, a whiney patient, Dr Hirako's unwanted advances, her assistant's mistake with filing and her less than good health couldn't dampen her spirits. She just had to think of Ulquiorra's flowers or his note and a smile would appear on her lips. Several times Orihime caught herself smiling, as if she was a child who had just gotten her favorite toy. However, pleased as she was, she couldn't bring herself to call Ulquiorra. She didn't know what it was that stopped her hands, but every time she picked up her phone to dial his number, she found that she could not.

On Saturday, two days after receiving the flowers, she picked up the phone to call him but ended up dialing Tatsuki's number instead. On an impulse she called her over. Making a sudden decision, she then called Rukia, Rangiku and Chizuru as well. It had been a while since all the girls had met, so she decided to make it a get together and ordered some Thai for the occasion.

"Thank you Hime," Rukia said as she took off her scarf, "That was a great idea."

Rangiku plopped on the couch, "I agree. I feel like it's been forever!" Although she had been a senior at the school, she had got along famously with the rest of the group.

"Princess!" Chizuru said hugging Orihime tightly, "You missed me, didn't you?"

Orihime wriggled out of her grip and said with a smile, "I missed you all."

Tatsuki grabbed Chizuru's collar, pulled her to the armchair, dumped her on it and ordered, "Stay here!"

Orihime sat next to Rangiku on the couch as the strawberry blonde asked, "So what's up with you all?"

Chizuru was the first to speak, "Life at the spa is awesome! Most of my customers are women and I am in heaven! I mean I get to massage women, can _anything_ be better than that?"

"Perverted as always," Tatsuki muttered under her breath.

Looking at Orihime Chizuru continued, "But that doesn't mean I don't love you anymore, my Princess. I will always love you, fear not!"

Orihime smiled, "I don't mind at all," she reassured her.

"When will you realize that Orihime doesn't love you?" Rukia asked seriously.

"Of course she loves me," Chizuru said unperturbed, "She just doesn't realize it yet. Someday she will, I'm certain of it."

Rangiku rolled her eyes and said, "Yeah, good luck with that."

"So how are things with you?" Chizuru asked, changing the topic.

Rangiku sighed, "My boss, this kid named Toshiro, is horribly stuck up. I'm the Floor Manager, for God's sake! But he keeps at my case as if I'm a child. I swear the man doesn't have a funny cuticle in his body! I have a feeling he actually thinks that I'm gonna steal some clothes out of the store or something."

"Given your love for designer clothes, I can understand his skepticism," Tatsuki said grinning.

"Yeah, I understand it too," Rangiku said tossing her hair, "but just because I understand it, doesn't mean I appreciate it!"

Rukia laughed, "You are weird!"

Rangiku grinned.

"What happened to that presentation you were working on, Rukia?" Orihime asked.

"Don't remind me," Rukia sighed, "My colleague screwed it up completely. We lost the deal."

"Oh no!" Rangiku and Orihime said together.

"Anyhow, forget about that. I don't want to think about it," She said firmly, "How's your karate team doing Tats?"

Tatsuki scowled, "I'm struggling with red tape. Can't tell you how difficult it is for my team to compete on higher levels. Just because they are juniors and are girls, they are last on the priority rung. They keep telling me that they have budgetary constraints and that the seniors need to get first priority. It pisses me off something bad. "

Everyone in the group spent the next ten minutes consoling Tatsuki, telling her that her problems would be solved.

Eventually Tatsuki said with a smile, "Thanks everyone. I feel so much better!" she turned to look at Orihime and continued, "By the way Hime, I just noticed, you've been smiling a lot, more than usual! What's up?"

Orihime grinned wider, unable to stop it and said "I just got some beautiful flowers."

"Who from?" Rukia asked surprised, "That creepy cardiologist?"

Orihime laughed as Rangiku said, "Impossible! I don't think Hime would be so happy about getting flowers from Dr. Creepy. It's gotta be a secret admirer. Right?"

Orihime continued to smile as she said, "No, no! I didn't get it from Dr Hirako. And the person who did send it to me is definitely not a secret admirer," she clarified "I got them from Ulquiorra."

A moment of stunned silence followed before everyone started speaking simultaneously.

"WHAT? Where? When? And how did you meet him? Wow, how long has it been since I heard that name?" Rukia asked.

Tatsuki shook her head in disbelief, "He… what? I can't believe it! Why would Ulquiorra Schiffer send you flowers?!"

"Is he still hot?" was Rangiku's question.

Chizuru seemed annoyed, "He's back? Why? I never liked how he behaved with my Princess."

Orihime held up her hands to calm them, "Relax! Relax! I'll answer your questions. I met him at the airport, he sent me the flowers as an apology and yes Rangiku, he's still hot. And Chizuru, he's one of my closest friends."

"Closest friends?" Chizuru said with a raised brow, "We are your close friends too. But we never sent flowers to you."

"Maybe because we've never had the need to?" Rangiku replied with a twist to her mouth.

Chizuru countered "Don't you remember how he hurt Hime the last time? Take it from me Rangiku, that guy is the harbinger of bad luck."

Something within Orihime snapped, "Chizuru, I will thank you to not talk about my friend in those terms!"

She felt a strong sense of déjà vu; this was exactly like when she had told them about her friendship with Ulquiorra. They had been so negative about the whole thing that when she had realized her true feelings for him, she had decided to keep it to herself. Her newfound feelings were already strained because of his absence; she had no desire to add salt to her wounds. All these years later, nothing had really changed. Granted adulthood had toned down their ferocity, but she was trained to look beyond words and her friends' body language was screaming disapproval. Chizuru was the only one who was being vocal about it and that hurt Orihime. Why couldn't her friends get over their prejudices?

Hastily she changed the topic and her friends gladly followed her lead. Apparently they didn't want to discuss the elephant in the room any more than she did, so the afternoon passed pleasantly enough, in spite of the awkward undercurrent.

* * *

That Sunday the shrill ring of her cell phone woke her up. Groggily she felt around her bedside table for the device and picked it up.

"Hello?" her voice was still muzzy from sleep.

"Oh, did I wake you up?" a crisp, beautiful, masculine voice sounded over the phone.

Instantly all her sleepiness vanished as she bit the insides of her cheeks to stop herself from grinning from ear to ear. "Ulquiorra?"

"Yes. Sorry didn't mean to disturb your sleep," he answered.

She sat up on her bed, "No it's ok really. I was just being lazy. What's up?"

"Well, you weren't calling, so I called."

Orihime nearly dropped her phone in surprise, "What?"

"I figured you must've received the flowers. I wanted to know if I'm forgiven," he asked softly.

"Of course!" she answered, "You know I won't hold it against you, especially after a sweet gesture like that."

She almost heard his shrug, "I don't know; you didn't call."

She wasn't sure what to say to that; it was so unlike the Ulquiorra she knew.

"If you've indeed forgiven me," he continued, "meet me for lunch."

Orihime opened and closed her mouth a few times, "Err…"

"You have other plans?" he asked in a strange voice.

"No, no," she replied quickly, "where and when?"

"I'll pick you up at eleven," he answered almost sounding relieved.

After Orihime gave him the directions he disconnected the call. She stared at the phone for a while completely baffled. Giving herself a mental shake she quickly got off the bed.

* * *

Ulquiorra stood at entrance of Orihime's multi-storied apartment building. He looked down at his attire of black chinos, off-white shirt and a coffee colored mock-neck pullover sweater and wondered if he was underdressed. He looked at the sky; at least it had stopped snowing, so it wasn't as cold as it had been during the week. He sighed, he was procrastinating. That call had taken a lot of planning and deliberation on his part. He briefly wondered what he was so nervous about; it wasn't like he was wooing her. She was a friend, just like Grimmjow or Nnoitra or Szayel. Admittedly he had never wanted to clad any of them in seductive clothing, or run his fingers along their arms and necks, like he wanted to do to her, but still, she was a friend. And therefore, his errant thoughts would have to be curbed. He took a deep breath and hit the button on the intercom. She seemed rather breathless as she buzzed him in.

As he stood in the elevator he idly wondered if perhaps he should try and woo her but dismissed the idea. He was here to mend a friendship and that was exactly what he would do, his raging hormones notwithstanding. Finally, as the elevator stopped on her floor, Ulquiorra resolved to keep his libido in check. The resolution was the most short-lived one in his life since it was blown to smithereens as soon as Orihime opened the door. She was dressed in a bottle green woolen three-quarter-sleeved wrap and a pair of charcoal grey pants. Her hair was simply rolled up and restrained with a clip, with bangs hanging down the side. She had minimal make up on and almost no accessories except the silver hoop earrings.

Before he could stop himself he said, "You look nice."

"Thank you! As do you," she said looking inordinately pleased, "Come in."

Ulquiorra sat down on the couch stiffly as she went about getting her purse, coat and shoes.

"You want something? A cup of coffee or tea?" she asked while looking for something.

"No thank you," he replied quickly, "I haven't forgotten my misadventure with your cooking."

Orihime scowled but let it pass. As the two were about to leave her phone rang. She had a brief and quick conversation with someone and although her tone had been absolutely polite Ulquiorra could see that she was irritated. Without any further words, she walked out of her door and he followed her. The silence continued till they reached his car. As soon as she got in, her fear took over. However, he had made up his mind that he wouldn't let her stay afraid.

"What's wrong, Carrot-top?"

Surprise was writ large on her face as she turned to look at him. "What do you mean?"

"Why are you irritated?" he asked.

To his delight there was not a trace of fear on her face as she replied, "I'm surprised you caught that."

He nodded and waited for her to elaborate.

"It's Chizuru. Ever since she's come to know that I've gotten in touch with you again, she's been keeping an infuriatingly close watch on me. Keeps calling me to ask me where I am, what I'm doing. She's called me about twelve times since last afternoon."

He raised a thick eyebrow, "Looks like your friends haven't changed."

Orihime sighed, "They've become even more protective of me ever since Sora passed away. It's almost as if they don't trust me to make my decisions. It frustrates me; they have a tendency to suffocate me sometimes. They're especially prejudiced about you. In fact because they're so negative and judgmental about you that I could never tell them …," she stopped suddenly, biting her lower lip.

The subtle action wasn't unnoticed by Ulquiorra, "You could never tell them what?"

"I … I could never tell them how much I missed you after you left," she finished in a low voice.

Ulquiorra's eyes narrowed slightly. Even though he was concentrating on the road, he had a feeling that Orihime was hiding something. He looked at her sideways but she was facing the other way so he couldn't be sure. However the one thing he was certain of was that she wasn't afraid. He didn't want her fear to come back and therefore he kept a steady stream of conversation. Eventually they arrived at the restaurant and the two of them stepped out of the car.

At the entrance she paused and said, "Ulquiorra, thanks."

He frowned, "For what?"

"For ensuring that I stay distracted enough to not get scared," she replied with a beautiful smile that made Ulquiorra's heart skip a beat.

Unsure of his voice, he shrugged.

* * *

Halfway through the lunch, Orihime asked what had been on her mind for a while, "Why are you behaving so differently?"

Ulquiorra blinked, "Sorry?"

"You're being very sweet, that's kinda unlike you," she said leaning slightly on the table.

The corners of Ulquiorra's lips twitched as he said, "Maybe I'm trying to woo you?"

Her heart fluttered slightly as she said, "Really? Are you?"

"No," he replied shortly.

She briefly wondered why she felt a stab of disappointment. Ignoring her unexpected reaction she said, "Good, I wouldn't know how to handle that."

His expression was strangely closed and he stayed silent as he used his cutlery to eat his food. Orihime's attention was drawn to his hands. She had always been fascinated by them. Long fingered and slim, his hands were exquisite. As a teenager she would imagine them playing the piano. As an adult however, her imagination was much more matured. A small, imperceptible shiver ran down her spine as she visualized them touching her intimately. Spurred by the mental image, heat pooled in the lower half of her body and she had to gulp some water just to control herself. This man was igniting an unprecedented desire within her and she didn't know how to handle it. She was still struggling with her sudden arousal when a voice cut in her thoughts.

"Ulquiorra, how are you honey?"

She snapped her head up to find Ulquiorra frowning at a woman who was standing by their table. The newcomer was not very tall, had long black hair and a shapely figure. Her features were sharp and she was fairly pretty but Orihime had the feeling that she wasn't someone to be taken lightly.

"Loly, what are you doing here?" Ulquiorra's tone was icy. He hadn't even bothered to stand up.

"Where are your manners Ulquiorra?" she said looking at Orihime, "Won't you introduce us?"

A brick wall would have had more expressions than Ulquiorra did as he made the introductions, "Loly this is Orihime, Orihime this is Loly, my ex."

"Orihime! I've heard a lot about you. So nice to finally meet you," Loly said sweetly.

The psychiatrist in Orihime was convinced that the woman hated her from the very core of her existence.


	8. Chapter 8

Here I am again, with a new chapter. I'll be shameless and say I love this chapter. I had so much fun writing it. Thanks to everyone who read and review this story regularly. I'm flattered by the attention.

Beta Cerice Belle.

Oh and I'm uncertain about when I'll be able to update Angels and Demons, I seem to have hit a nasty block with that fic. Sorry.

* * *

**Chapter 8**

**PAST**

The setting Sun cast pinkish-orange hues, making everything look strangely brighter. Orihime kept stealing glances at her silent companion. She was completely thrown off by his unexpected act of kindness. Why had he offered to walk her home? Yes, the area around the park wasn't safe, but they had left the unsafe area a while back.

"I think you should concentrate on the road," he said suddenly without turning to look at her.

Lost in her own thoughts, Orihime had missed hearing his words, "What?"

Patiently he repeated, "I said, concentrate on the road. Given your propensity to turn the absolute mundane into potentially life threatening situations, I don't think it's very wise for you to be distracted."

Orihime made a face, "I don't have a 'propensity to turn absolute mundane into potentially life threatening situations', I'm merely accident prone."

Ulquiorra shrugged, "Yeah, same difference."

She opened and closed her mouth several times trying to come up with a witty reply to that but failed. Finally she latched on to the other thing he had said, "What makes you say that I'm distracted?"

"You're almost always distracted. If not by Kurosaki then by something or someone else, like right now, I was your distraction," he answered calmly.

"Oh jeez! You're obsessed with yourself aren't you?" Orihime said with exasperation, "I bet your favorite pastime is staring at yourself in the mirror?"

To her surprise Ulquiorra's mouth twitched in a quasi-smirk, "You're funny. Every time I point out the truth about how you're around me, you turn it around and make it sound like I have an ego issue."

"Oh you mean you don't have an ego issue?" Orihime asked with mock sweetness.

He answered shortly, "My ego or the lack thereof is not the point of contention here. The point is that you get distracted rather easily. You need to focus more on your task at hand, especially because you're … ah … accident prone. And since you were looking at me every now and then I would have to say, I was the reason you were distracted."

"You … you … Even when you're nice, you're a jerk!" she said vehemently.

"Yes," Ulquiorra accepted acerbically, "being a jerk is what I specialize in."

Orihime had the feeling that she had hurt him and for some reason, she didn't like it. She briefly pondered if she should apologize but as she was struggling with the right words Ulquiorra spoke again, "By the way, are you aware that there is a spider crawling on your hair?"

Orihime was mortally afraid of spiders and hence she panicked. Desperately, she looked everywhere, flailing her arms around as she said in a shrill voice, "Where? Where?"

Ulquiorra stopped walking, turned to face her and said with a raised brow, "Where do you think?"

Orihime flapped around, brushing her hair desperately, "Is it gone? Is it gone? Please tell me it's gone!"

Ulquiorra sighed, "Here, let me."

He extended his left hand, since his right one was in a cast, and brushed off the offending spider. However, his hand lingered, seemingly on its own. He twirled an auburn strand around his finger, feeling the silky smoothness of the hair.

It was happening again! Orihime once again felt like she had suddenly dropped a great height. She couldn't move. Ulquiorra seemed enchanted by her hair and she seemed to be under his spell. What were those emerald eyes doing to her? Her body thrummed with an excitement that was entirely unexpected and not wholly unwelcome.

Suddenly Ulquiorra dropped his hand and shoved it into his pocket. He looked at her as if seeing her for the first time. She could see confusion evident on his face. However the expression lasted only for a few seconds before he slid back into his regular non-expression.

Before she could stop herself she asked, "Why do you do that?"

"Do what?" his tone was strangely gruff.

"Hide behind an expressionless visage? Why do you want to portray yourself as someone incapable of feeling anything?"

He looked at her for a long moment before replying, "I learned a long time ago that wearing your heart on your sleeve like an idiot will only result in pain."

"So you shut yourself off and believe that you'll be impervious to pain?" she persisted, "It doesn't work that way Ulquiorra."

"What the hell do you know about pain?" he snapped, "You've no right to be judging me, standing in that annoyingly happy corner of your world where everything is sunshine and rainbows. You …"

"You're scared, aren't you?" she whispered, causing him to stop mid-sentence. "I'd be too, if I were you. I think you've been badly hurt. I would have probably done …"

"Shut up," he said in a barely audible voice, "Not a word more!"

She held up her hands in surrender, "I'm sorry. I overstepped my boundaries. It's none of my business what you do or why."

Without giving any indication of having heard her, he spun on his heels and started walking. She walked next to him, feeling a myriad of emotions, not all of which she could put a name to. The two of them walked the rest of the way to Orihime's house in complete silence. Upon reaching home, she realized that Sora's car wasn't in the driveway, which meant he was still at work. Thinking that it would be polite to invite him in for a cup of coffee she extended the invitation but he denied it with a shake of his head. He turned around and started to walk away but a couple of paces later he paused and twisted to face her.

"Carrot-top," he didn't sound even remotely angry, "Don't mention this to anyone if you know what's good for you."

Orihime frowned, "Are you threatening me in some way?"

"On the contrary, I'm suggesting," he answered plainly, "Given my reputation; it would do you more harm than good. You've a squeaky clean image and a completely untarnished track record. It would be prudent to let it stay that way."

He walked away before she could reply.

* * *

Later that evening, Ulquiorra sat on his bed, working on an essay. After an hour or so, he slammed his laptop in annoyance. He had tried to concentrate on his essay but that damnable girl kept popping into his mind. What was it about her that affected him this way? Why was he seeing her when he was supposed to be concentrating in his essay? Her voice kept playing in his mind, asking him questions no one had asked. He could still feel the silkiness of the strand of her hair in his fingers. He could still smell that slightly citrusy scent that seemed to cling to her.

"Get a grip on yourself," he told himself shortly. No one had broken though his defenses till now;he had gone out of his way to ensure that. But damn, that girl had the knack of blowing holes in them. Somehow she had managed to pinpoint the exact reason why he had shut the world out and that unnerved him. This girl saw right past his exterior and peeked straight into his soul and he did not enjoy the sensation. He knew it would be wisest to stay as far away from her as possible, but knowing something and implementing it were two completely different things. He felt inexplicably drawn to her, like a moth to the flames.

He had tried, unsuccessfully, to ignore her for two days but his eyes seemed to have a mind of their own. They would find her, no matter where she was. Several times she had caught him staring and he knew he should have averted his eyes but he couldn't. His eyes weren't listening to him. Every time she had caught him staring, she would look away flustered and he would feel like he'd been punched in the gut. Earlier today when she had wandered off to the street, his heart had jumped to his throat. It was actually a very good thing that both their friends had been around because he had not been himself for a few seconds there. He had been taken by a sudden urge to hug that girl. He had all but fled from the scene, scared of what he had actually wanted to do.

Later, by some weird quirk of events, he had met her again at the park. He had gone there to clear his head but had ended up muddling it further. He had both wanted to talk to her and stay away from her at the same time. When she had approached him, he had done his best to shoo her away and had almost succeeded at it as well but then he just _had_ to botch it up by offering to walk her home. Why had he done that? What exactly had he been thinking? Whatever it was that had prompted him to do so, it had been one heck of a bad idea. It had two very disastrous outcomes. Not only had she managed to see through him like an x-ray machine but he had also touched her hair. He just couldn't afford to let her come any closer so he would have to do something to push her away.

A knock interrupted his musings. Surprised he looked up to find his guardian Aizen standing at the door. Aizen was a tall, medium built man with thick brown hair that was swept back with a strand falling on his face. He had sharp, elegant face. Ulquiorra had always thought he was a very handsome man who could charm anyone. Anyone who didn't notice his eyes that is. Ulquiorra found his eyes very creepy and that was why he didn't trust him the slightest. However Aizen had been a close friend of Ulquiorra's father and a distant cousin of his mother. He was also their lawyer and thereby his legal guardian and trustee. So Ulquiorra endured him.

"Ulquiorra," Aizen said softly, "You need to come with me to the bank tomorrow. You have to sign a few papers."

"I can't," Ulquiorra answered shortly, "I have several assignments to submit tomorrow."

"No problem, I'll pick you up from the school," he answered.

Ulquiorra shrugged in response. Taking that as an agreement, Aizen walked away. Ulquiorra sighed and opened his laptop to try and work on the essay.

* * *

The next day Orihime met him at the corridor. He was leaning against the wall talking to Grimmjow. Actually the blue-haired boy was talking loudly; he was merely standing, looking at him. His unbroken hand was in his pocket and the broken one hanging by his side limply. As she walked past him, he turned his head towards her and their eyes met. Seeing him Orihime felt her lips stretch into a genuine smile. His reaction though was completely unexpected. He frowned and looked absolutely furious. He stared at her; the anger emanating from him was almost palpable. His eyes narrowed to slits before turning to look away from her.

Orihime gasped in surprise. What had she done? Why was he being so hostile towards her? Was it because of the comment about him being scared? But she had apologized for it and he had seemed fine when he had dropped her home. So why was he mad at her now? Uncertain and feeling more than a little disturbed, she walked into the classroom.

She could think of little else the rest of the day. She kept looking at him but he never looked at her. Hurt, confused and more than a little upset, Orihime sat in the lunch-hall, pushing the food on her plate.

"Orihime, what's wrong?" Uryuu asked.

"Huh? N - nothing! I was just a little lost," she answered vaguely.

"Yes I see that," he answered, "lost in what exactly?"

"Umm the weekend," she improvised, "I was wondering what everyone's doing."

"Hime," Rukia said leaning on the table, "we're going shopping, remember?"

"Oh yeah," she laughed forcibly, "I – I forgot. Heh."

"Princess," Chizuru said draping an arm around her, "Are you alright?"

A cough distracted her. She turned her face to see Ulquiorra dabbing his lips with a napkin as he coughed into it. Sighing she turned to look at her friends and removed Chizuru's hand.

"Yes I'm fine, I just have a bit of a headache is all;" she answered brusquely, "Excuse me."

Without waiting for any answers, she stood up from the table and fled from the lunch-hall. She didn't notice the pair of jade eyes that followed her.

Ulquiorra continued to ignore her for the rest of the day and her mood continued to darken. She had made up her mind to confront him at the end of day but as they left the school, he got into a black car that stood at the gate and left. So she never got a chance to talk to him. What was worse was that it was a Friday, which meant she wouldn't be able to confront him before Monday. She barely managed to say her goodbyes before she walked over to home.

* * *

"Hime," Sora asked at the dinner table that night, "What's bothering you?"

Orihime looked up, "Sora, what do I do? He is being very strange. I mean I agree I said something that I shouldn't have but I apologized. He seemed perfectly fine yesterday when we spoke but then today when I smiled at him, he just went nuts! He's been ignoring me all day long and I don't know why. I couldn't confront him after the school either! I can't keep wondering what the hell happened all through the weekend!"

"Language young lady," Sora said in his gentle yet firm tone, "And I don't see why you have to wait all day long. Just call him."

"I can't!" she whined, "I don't have his number!"

Sora looked lost, "You don't have Kurosaki's number?"

Orihime blinked, "Why would I want to call Ichigo?"

"Weren't you just talking about him?"

Orihime's eyes grew wide, "What? No! What were you hearing? Did I say Ichigo's name? I was talking about Ulquiorra."

Sora raised his eyebrows in surprise, "Ulquiorra? That's the first time I've heard that name. I think I must meet this guy."

"Why would you want to meet Ulquiorra?"

"Anyone who can make you forget about Kurosaki for as long as he has managed to must be some guy," Sora said grinning.

Orihime opened her mouth to protest but couldn't find the words to do so. Sora had spoken the truth. She hadn't thought about Ichigo even once today.


	9. Chapter 9

Life is being INSANE at the moment. Updating from SF. Writing has kept me sane in these trying times. I have no idea when I'll be able to update again. Chances are the next update will also be from LYTO because I'm not ni the frame of mind to write Angels & Demons or Trust to Hope.

Reviews please, I need a few smiles.

Beta Cerice Belle

* * *

**Chapter 9**

**PRESENT**

Ulquiorra was extremely annoyed on the drive back to Orihime's home. Loly Aiverrne was the last person he had wanted to see, especially when with Orihime. Loly had stuck around for a while, making small talk with her. The two women had been perfectly polite and courteous with each other but he had the distinct impression that there was a hostile undercurrent. Not that he expected anything less from Loly but Orihime's frosty glare was something that had surprised him. He briefly wondered about it but then she was a Psychiatrist. He was fairly certain she must have picked up the negative vibes and thus reacted accordingly.

"Did you love her?" her question came out of the blue, surprising him.

"Sorry?"

She repeated her question, "I asked did you love her?"

Ulquiorra thought for a minute wondering how to phrase it, "No, I don't think I did. I cared for her but I don't think I loved her."

"You're not sure?" she asked again.

"Are you psychoanalyzing me?" he asked with a gleam in his eyes.

Orihime opened her mouth to defend herself but upon realizing that he was teasing her, she smiled, "Don't avoid the question."

He sighed, "You're persistent, just like I remember," he paused for a bit concentrating on the road, "No, I'm not sure. Whatever I felt for her, it wasn't deep enough."

"So how did the two of you meet?"

It occurred to him that she wasn't showing even a trace of fear while inside the car and it pleased him. So long as she wasn't afraid, he would answer any query that she had… almost any query.

"I met her through work," he answered briefly.

"And," she probed.

He gave her a quick glance, "And what?"

"People usually say more after that," Orihime explained patiently.

"What do you want me to say?" he asked in his monotone.

"What happened after you met her? How did you guys start dating?"

He huffed, "She works at an architecture firm and we were remodeling our office. We spent quite a bit of time together, choosing colors, woodwork, panels and sundry. One day she just asked me out for a coffee and I agreed. She was fairly interesting to talk to and slowly we started to see each other outside of work. One thing led to another and before long we were dating."

Orihime was interested, "Then? Why did you guys break up?"

"You're like the Spanish Inquisition, you know."

"Yes, I've been told," Orihime replied with nonchalance, "Now, how did you guys break-up?"

Ulquiorra frowned, "She became very possessive. Where am I, what am I doing, who am I with and all of that. We had our fights over it, but we were still together. Slowly her possessiveness started to drive me away and I began to stay away from her. But it was the first serious relationship of my life and I wanted to make an effort at saving it. So I decided to take it to the next level, with the hope that maybe things will be better. Turned out, I was trying to save something that was long dead. She had found someone else."

She nodded, "I see. That must have hurt."

He shrugged, "Not really. I mean her betrayal stung, but I think my ego was the one that took the most damage."

"So why were you so annoyed at her?"

Trust Orihime to know exactly what he felt, "Well, she can be a very unpleasant person if she wants to."

She nodded and looked away. After a brief silence she asked, "Have you ever really loved anyone?"

Ulquiorra almost lost control of his car; such was his surprise at the question. He managed to get it in control right in time, "Yes I have, why do you ask?"

She shrugged, "Generally."

"What about you? Ever loved anyone?"

She smiled wistfully with a faraway look on her face, "Yes, deeply."

He wondered who it could have been but decided that he didn't want to know the answer. So he asked the other question he wanted to ask, "Any serious relationships?"

Orihime shook her head, "No. There was a classmate of mine from college who I was dating briefly. Things had looked like it would get serious but then the accident happened. He never showed up at the hospital or at Sora's funeral."

"I imagine that put an end to any semblance of a relationship," he said dryly.

She smirked, "Effectively."

Ulquiorra looked at her, "I never asked, what happened with Kurosaki?"

For a brief second an expression flickered before her face became inscrutable, "Rukia happened."

"Oh," was all he could say. It was obvious to him now that the one she had loved had been Ichigo Kurosaki. It caused his insides to churn uncomfortably. He wondered why he was reacting in this way. It wasn't like it was unexpected. Orihime had been holding a candle for Kurosaki since as far back as he could remember. He changed the topic to other safer topics, recalling their various classmates, teachers and their oddities.

* * *

As Ulquiorra turned into his driveway, after dropping Orihime off at her home, he spotted a small pink car parked at the front of his garage. Loly was leaning against it, her arms folded in front of her. He parked his car and got out.

"Why are you here?" he asked without preamble.

"I just happened to be in the same restaurant," she replied with a smile.

"Cut the bullshit Loly," he said seriously, "There's no such thing as coincidence, not with you."

Loly grinned and held her arms up, "Alright, I admit. I sought you out, deliberately."

A light flurry had begun to fall, causing the temperature to drop. Ulquiorra however ignored it, "And why did you do that?"

"Isn't it obvious?" she asked seriously, "I want to start over."

"I don't care what you want Loly," he replied, "I'm done with you. I've moved on."

She grabbed his sleeve as he made to move, "Ulquiorra, please, listen to me. The thing with Ggio, it was a mistake, one that I've regretted ever since. Please, give me one more chance."

Ulquiorra shook his head, "Like I said, I don't care. It makes absolutely no difference to me how much you regret. A couple of years ago, it may have made me reconsider but now it's too late."

"You've every right to be angry," she said in a shaky voice, "I was a bitch to you. I'm so sorry. Please, I promise I won't do it again, I'll be better this time, I swear!"

He gave a tired sigh, "I'm not angry. In fact I don't feel anything for you anymore."

Her lower lip quivered as her grip on his shirt tightened, "Ulquiorra, I love you."

With a firm but gentle hand he pried her fingers off, "I'm truly sorry Loly. I hope you find it in you to get over all this." A couple of tears trickled down her eyes and he wiped them off tenderly, "This is goodbye."

Ulquiorra turned and started to walk when he felt his hand being held in a rough grasp. He turned to find himself looking at the enraged face of the black-haired woman.

"I'm a proud woman Ulquiorra Schiffer. I swallowed my pride when I came here and begged for you to take me back into your life. You trampled all over it. You think I'm going to let you forget that? Think again. If you can't be mine, I won't let you be anyone else's. That's my promise to you."

Saying so she let go of his hand, got into her car, slammed the door and sped away. Ulquiorra stood in his driveway with the snow swirling softly around him.

* * *

Over the next few weeks, the two friends kept in touch regularly through phone or emails. Orihime tried not to meet him because she wasn't sure if she was prepared for yet another hormonal upheaval that seemed to be triggered by Ulquiorra's presence. Surprisingly, he hadn't suggested a meeting either. Sometimes she wondered who the person was that he said he had loved. He never mentioned her and she never asked. If he wanted to tell her, he would do so without being asked. She wasn't sure she wanted to know.

The one thing that she was extremely pleased about was that time hadn't dulled their friendship at all. They were still the same; brutally honest with each other, constantly yanking each other's chain and sharing their deepest fears and almost all of their secrets with each other without any reservations. Orihime sometimes felt a little guilty for keeping a couple of things from him but some truths were better left unsaid. Knowing him, she knew that the moment she confessed her feelings for him, he would withdraw from her. He would talk to her, yes, but the conversations would be superficial and fake. He would build an impenetrable wall around himself. She couldn't risk that, not after missing her best friend for so long. Thus she would keep those secrets hidden deep in her heart, where they belonged.

It was a Friday evening and Orihime sat painting her toe nails and talking to him. She held the phone in the crook of her neck as she was telling him the latest about Dr Hirako.

"I think he was trying to peep down my blouse," she muttered.

"You tend to befriend perverts, don't you?" was his query.

"You should talk. I mean Nnoitra is the biggest pervert I have ever seen," she retorted.

"Yes that he is," he replied, "but he wouldn't do anything to me."

"Psh! Szayel might try though," she quipped.

"He'd end up with more than just a broken hand."

She giggled, "Broken hand eh? Reminds me of how you broke your hand back in High School."

She could visualize his scowl, "You had to remind me of that embarrassment?"

She laughed, "Oh I'm never going to let you live that one down. I mean who knew that Ulquiorra Schiffer, the super badass dude could break his hand while doing the bidding of a five year old."

"Done with your childish games?" he asked.

"Yup!" she agreed.

"So about that creepy cardiologist, what's his name again? Hirako?" when Orihime hummed in agreement he continued, "What're you going to do about him?"

"Nothing," she answered closing the nail-polish bottle, "I'm going to do the same thing I've done thus far, ignore him."

"I don't think that'll work, but it's your choice," he answered.

Orihime smiled. As usual, Ulquiorra allowed her to take her own decision. Anyone else would have gone on to tell her how they thought that it was a bad choice and how she should have actually done so and so.

His voice interrupted her reverie, "How do you manage to find these characters?"

"What do you mean?" she asked.

"I mean, you have a tendency to attract these sickos around you," he said in his monotone, "Like that weird guy who used to be in your group, what was his name again, the one who used to follow Kurosaki around like a puppy?"

"You mean Keigo?" she laughed, "You wouldn't believe how sophisticated and suave he's become now."

"You're right, I don't believe it."

"So how's Grimmjow and Nel's house-hunt going?" she asked.

Ulquiorra sighed, "I really don't know how those two have been in a relationship for so long."

She snickered, "Why?"

"I made the mistake of going with them to one of their visits. I wanted to hit my head against a wall."

"That bad huh?" She wiggled one of her feet to ensure that the color looked good.

"Worse," he said, "They bickered about everything. Starting from the door texture to the kitchen sink to the fire place. I swear the way those guys are going about it, if they end up with a house ever, I'm going to consider it the 8th wonder of the world."

Orihime grinned, "Hey bickering is fun. We do it all the time."

"Yes, but we're not a couple," he reminded her.

"Tch, small difference," she answered.

"By the way, Nel was asking about you," he said after a small, almost imperceptible pause, "She was thrilled to bits when she learned that we've gotten back in touch."

"Huh, when was this?" Orihime asked puzzled.

"Yesterday evening," he answered.

"But... I spoke to Nel day before yesterday and I told her that we were back in touch."

The pause lasted longer than Orihime anticipated, "Nel can be weird at times. Anyhow I have to go now, talk to you later. Bye."

"Uh, sure. Bye," she said, perplexed by his sudden change.

* * *

Later that night, Orihime took a long hot shower. She stepped out of the shower cubicle and wiped the mirror. She took a couple of steps backwards, looked at herself in the full length and pouted. She'd indulged in some chocolates and that showed. She turned around to look at her profile when her eyes fell on the small tattoo situated low on the left hip. In small, neat and cursive letters the tattoo said "Direct". Very few people knew of the existence of the said tattoo and fewer still knew of the meaning. In fact, other than her, the only person who knew it was dead for six years now. She thumbed her tattoo gently, sending a silent prayer to Sora's departed soul, hoping that it found the peace he so richly deserved.

Orihime jumped a little when her doorbell rang. With a deft action she put the bath robe over herself and walked to the door. She peered through the peephole and gave a tired sigh. She plastered a smile that she didn't feel and opened the door.

"Princess!" Chizuru squealed happily, "I got us some ice-cream."

Orihime gave a small smile as she waved her in. The red-head skipped over to the couch and plopped herself on it as the host tried to rein in her impatience.

"I'll change and be back in a bit," she said with as much politeness as she could muster.

Chizuru let her eyes travel over her body, winked and said, "I don't mind, I think you look absolutely sexy!"

Orihime gave a smile she didn't feel and walked into her bedroom, locking the door to be doubly safe. Once inside, she scowled in annoyance. She had planned to catch up on a movie and probably chat with Ulquiorra if he was online, but now that was out of question. She picked up her phone and sent a quick text message 'She's here – AGAIN!'

Just as she was putting on the pants of her track-suit, her phone beeped. She opened the text message that said '*eye-roll*, throw her out.'

He never failed to bring a smile on her face and he didn't disappoint this time either. She went out to meet and talk to the red-head.


	10. Chapter 10

I'm still caught up with some craziness in my personal life and therefore both Trust to Hope and Angels & Demons are on hold. I know it's been a while since I've updated Angels & Demons, but somehow I'm unable to concentrate enough to write either of the two stories. I have everything about the two stories planned but I'm not in the frame of mind to pen them down.

To the anonymous reviewers: I thank you for your reviews. I just wish you could drop in a signed review so that I could respond to you. FFNET doesn't let me respond to unsigned reviews and I would really like to reply to some of you.

Since the reviews have crossed 150, my shoutout is due. Thanks to: Kornluv44, Darisy, Cerice Belle, LuluMonk, Nicole Tsukiyomi, TheCatWithTheHat, Cherryvampiress, Xtremefairy, Rin Sessys Girl, Ulquihime 7980, Kohryu, AkuRokuTurkTrainee, guest 1, Adultswim12, aryaputra, lovely, Szerion, Spirit of the Damned, Ichiruki27, Guest 2, guest 3, Ati-Cha, lovely-smile, Anon, randomfan17, Sakura's fire, MontesiaKurosaki6, topamgagktheretopangagk, LittleMargarita, Fairyarah, crono, QueenAlexiel, im ur misconception, guest 4, AutumnSunshine, Zigra, I'llBiteYouToDeath, Ugnyte, XCynicalX, LuluMonk, Orihime 4-or-6, GapTeethBlueHair, guest5, venus hawthorne, lovely rain dancer, Belit Lihara, guest6, guest7, Waca, guest8, guest9, guest10, guest11, frawg360, NephandiMan

Beta: The super awesome **Cerice Belle**

* * *

**Chapter 10**

**PAST**

Crap! Talk about overkill! All Ulquiorra had wanted was to ensure that she wouldn't come closer to him. The things she did to him scared him and he wanted to stay away from her as much as he could. But he had a feeling that she wouldn't listen to him if he told her. So he would have to do something to push her away. All the way to school, he kept pondering what to do but couldn't come up with a satisfactory course of action. He spotted her in the corridor long before she saw him. He wanted to push Grimmjow away and rush to her, talk to her, listen to her voice and let her laughter wash over him. At the same time he wanted her to stay as far away from him as possible. A crippling fear grabbed him as he realized that she was coming closer. Despite appearances, Grimmjow was a sharp guy. He didn't want his blue-haired friend to figure out that Ulquiorra Schiffer was losing the battle against a girl who was armed with smiles, beauty and innocence. So when she smiled, he did the only thing he knew how to do, defend himself with offense.

Unfortunately in his bid to do so, he was harsher than he had intended to be. The look of hurt on her face was like a punch in his solar-plexus. He couldn't bear to look at her face and turned away, feeling miserable. She had been right, he was a jerk. From the covert glances he stole at her he could see that she was really upset. He wanted to go to her and explain, but he couldn't. It would negate everything he had achieved thus far. When that lesbian girl put her arms around Orihime, the feeling roiling inside him had been extremely unpleasant and he almost choked on his glass of water. He turned it into a cough, masking his scowl behind the paper napkin. When she had shot out of the lunch hall, it was all he could do to not follow her. He kept thinking about her all through the weekend. On Saturday evening, he had even driven over to her house but upon reaching it, he continued to drive. He didn't have the courage to stop by. His dreams on Sunday night had been plagued by the orange-haired girl and for once, even after he had woken up from his recurring nightmare, he had been able to fall back to sleep.

He reached the school early on Monday; all the while he was telling himself that it had nothing to do with the desire to see her once more. Incidentally she was early as well and she spotted him almost immediately. Much to his chagrin, she walked straight to him. He turned around and started walking away when she called out.

"Ulquiorra, wait! I need to talk."

There weren't many people in the school yet but the few that were around had started giving them curious glances. The rumors would not be too far behind, so he decided to nip it at the bud. When she came close to him he whispered fiercely "Later. Not right now. Not here."

As expected, she started to protest "But …"

"LATER!" he ground out, "At the park, this evening."

Without giving her a chance to object, he walked away. As the distance between the two increased, Ulquiorra started to curse himself. Hadn't his plan been to avoid her at all cost? Why had he suggested that they meet at the park? He didn't doubt it anymore. He was losing his mind and this girl was the cause of it all.

* * *

Orihime oscillated between elation and apprehension. She looked forward to meeting him at the park but was also nervous about what he had to say. The day passed in a haze and later Orihime would remember little of it, except for the one time when her eyes met those beautiful verdant eyes. He didn't look away and neither did she. There was no trace of anger in them, however she wasn't sure what was the emotion that the eyes held. All she knew that those eyes played a tune that her body seemed to love to dance to. They drove her to the point of distraction. Over the weekend she had decided that those eyes were her own personal brand of heroin and she was completely addicted to it.

Finally, having practically sleep-walked through the day at school, Orihime made her way to the park as soon as she could. He was there, left hand in pocket, right hand covered in cast, hanging by his side. He was looking at the canal. He was so still that Orihime wondered if he had fallen asleep while standing upright.

"Ulquiorra?" she said tentatively.

"I wasn't sure you'd come," he said, although from his tone Orihime suspected that she wasn't meant to hear those words.

"How could I not? You called me," she replied softly.

Ulquiorra turned to look at her and Orihime's heart skipped a beat. There was something in those magical eyes of his that made her feel like she was special. The two of them stared at each other without saying a word. She was feeling things that she couldn't name. She was acutely aware of his clean scent. It seemed to her that she was enveloped by his presence. All of a sudden, seemingly from nowhere she was overtaken by an intense desire to hug him.

The thought shocked her into action and she quickly turned away, both to escape the spell of his eyes and to hide the embarrassed flush on her cheeks. Behind her, she heard him shuffle slightly. Just as the silence had started to seem awkward, he spoke "What was it that you wanted to say?"

She heaved a sigh of relief and turned to face him. "What happened on Friday? Why were you so angry?"

A shadow of an emotion came on his face but was gone before Orihime could grasp it. "Yeah, about that," he said after a pause, "don't talk to me while we're in school."

She was perplexed, "What? Why?"

He sighed, "Haven't you heard those rumors about me? Don't you know what kind of a reputation I have? What do you think will happen if someone sees you talking to me?"

She shrugged, "Those who want to talk will talk, regardless of our precautions. And as for the unsavory rumors about you … and your parents, I don't believe them. Not one bit."

A small, sardonic smile twisted his lips, "Then you belong to a very small group of individuals. But I have to ask, why don't you believe them? You hardly know me."

She shrugged and turned to face the canal, "I know Karakura Town. I have seen it up close and I know it isn't pretty. It has teeth."

He raised an eyebrow, "You too?"

"Not me personally," she replied slowly, "but Sora, my brother, he's been bitten by it. I was too young to feel the real impact and he sheltered me to a great extent, but I saw what it did to him, it wasn't pretty."

To her surprise, Ulquiorra was silent. He didn't ask a single question or offer her a word of comfort. Somehow, Orihime found it relieving. He was allowing her to be, giving her time and space. Without meaning to, she found herself speaking of a past she hadn't shared even with Tatsuki.

"My father had anger issues. He wasn't as bad when Sora was growing up. In fact he was alright when I was a baby. But when I was about four, my mother died of a liver failure. Somehow, in his mind, I was responsible for it."

"Was it bad?" he asked gently.

She pondered on his question for a while, "I think it was. I mean he did break my leg once because I accidentally broke a vase. But the thing is Sora protected me. If it hadn't been for him, I think things would have been worse. Then, as soon as he was able to, Sora took me away from him. I haven't seen him since. I don't even know if he's alive or dead."

He nodded and continued to remain silent and Orihime was glad for it.

"After Sora took me in, people wouldn't let him be in peace. They would constantly tell him that he was not being fair, taking me away from my father, especially since I lost my mother and that he was much too young to 'play parent', blah, blah, blah. Not one of them paused to think what it must have been like for a twenty year old to take a nine year old's responsibility. He put a hold to his life, so that I could live. No. All people saw was a young man, overstepping his 'boundaries'. It bogged him down sometimes but he never let it affect me."

"He seems like a good person," Ulquiorra said finally.

Orihime smiled fondly, "Yes he is. The best brother in the world! But that's beside the point. The point is, if Karakura can be so unkind to a great guy like Sora, I can totally see them being cruel to you."

He looked at her, "Do you mean to say that I'm not a good person?"

She looked at him baffled, "What? No! I …" she paused. It took her a moment to realize that he was teasing her. She grinned, extended her hand and said, "Friends?"

"Would you listen to me if I said no?" he asked flatly.

"Not particularly," she said with a laugh.

"Thought so," he said dryly as he accepted her outstretched hand, "But, I would still say refrain from talking to me at school."

"Done," she answered brightly. "Can I ask you something?"

He nodded.

"How did you break your hand?"

He frowned, "You don't give up do you?"

"Nope!"

He sighed, "Fine, I'll tell you. But only under the condition that you won't repeat the story to anyone."

She crossed her heart, "I swear!"

"I fell off a tree."

"What were you doing on a tree?" she was curious.

He looked uncomfortable, "I was … umm … trying to get a cat down."

Orihime bit the inside of her cheeks to stop the laughter from erupting, "And whose cat was it?"

He looked away as he replied gruffly, "My house keeper's five year old daughter."

She couldn't control it any longer. She dissolved into peals of hysterical laughter. She wiped her tears of pure mirth and said, "May I ask why you did it?"

"She was crying," he grumbled.

That caused her to dissolve into fresh wave of laughter. "Thank you so much for that mental image," she said after she stopped laughing, "I'm going to treasure that one. But seriously, you're a softie, aren't you?"

He did not reply to that.

"And cute to boot," she added sweetly.

"I firmly object to being referred to as 'cute', 'sweet', 'adorable' or any synonym thereof."

She grinned, "Point taken."

* * *

"So did you get a chance to talk to Ulquiorra?" Sora asked casually.

"Oh yes," she replied enthusiastically, "I did! I spoke to him for a LONG time. He even walked me home."

Sora suppressed a smile as he said, "Really? So what was he so angry at you for?"

"Well, actually …" she paused, "Now that you say it, I don't think he answered that question."

He laughed, "I like this guy more and more."

"He is a great guy," Orihime gushed, "not at all like the rumors paint him to be. You know, I even told him about dad. I didn't mean to, the words just came out."

"I would've been surprised if you hadn't told him," he said solemnly.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

Sora shook his head, "Nothing."

* * *

She was a breath of fresh air in his life. He was completely besotted by her. He liked everything about her. The way her eyes would light up every time she saw him. Or the way she moved her hands while talking or the way she would twirl a strand of fiery hair around her finger as she contemplated on something. She had become his need. It had taken a while but he had acknowledged to himself that he had a huge crush on her. However, he knew that she wanted Kurosaki and he told himself that he was perfectly fine with it. Of course that didn't mean that he didn't experience occasional pangs of jealousy, but then he had always known about her choice. Moreover he treasured the relationship that had sprung up between them; he would do nothing to jeopardize it.

Over the weeks they had fallen into a routine and he was dependent on it. At his behest, she completely ignored him at school. However, they would meet at the park regularly. The two friends would sit there, watch the Sunset and then he would walk her home. He found her company liberating. She liked the fact that he was brutally honest with her and she would return in kind. They still argued over nothing but he enjoyed every moment of it. He found himself telling her things he hadn't even told Grimmjow. She was the first person outside of his 'house' who knew that often he would spend his nights lying awake. In fact, that was the very topic they had been discussing at that moment.

"So call me," she said with a scowl, "my phone is usually right by my side."

"Sometimes I wake up at 3 a.m." he told her.

"Yes, I heard you the first time," she said making a face, "And I still want you to call me, regardless of what time it is."

"You're insane," he said with a wave of his hand.

"Haven't we already established that fact about thirty odd times by now?" she asked seriously, "Is there a purpose to reiterate a known, although completely irrelevant detail?"

He raised his eyebrows, "You're talking like me."

"I'm flattered you noticed. However, do you realize why I partook in that little activity?" she asked, her face completely expressionless.

"Alright, you excel in impersonating me," he admitted, "but what is the point?"

"The point is that I don't want you spend your nights alone," she said.

"Excuse me?"

Realizing her blunder, she blushed, "N – n – no what … what I mean is … I… I don't like the fact that you lie awake through the night. It must be awfully lonely."

"I manage," he said with a shrug.

She shook her head, "No. Call me. No matter what the time, no matter what day, call me."

"If Sora came to know, he'd kill me. Not that I would blame him," he tried.

"Are you kidding me? Sora is probably your number one fan," she said with a grin, "Someday soon he's gonna come to you, asking for your autograph."

"But he hasn't even met me."

"Yes," Orihime nodded sagely, "A deliberate play on my part. You guys will start a Mutual Admiration Society, fangasming over each other and I'll be left in the bi-lines wondering what the hell happened. NO THANK YOU!"

Ulquiorra smirked slightly.

After a few moments of compatible silence she spoke again, in milder tones, "Ulquiorra, what do you see in your nightmares?"

He looked at her long and hard before saying, "The murder of my parents."


	11. Chapter 11

I'm heading back to San Francisco again this weekend. I will be there for a week. I will try an update another LYTO chapter from there, but I can't guarantee anything. Updates for 'Angles and Demons' and 'Trust to Hope' will come after I return from SF.

As for this chapter, there is a tiny 'Game of Thrones' (the TV series) reference. Someone calls Orihime what Cersei calls Sansa in the series.

Beta Cerice Belle.

* * *

**Chapter 11**

**PRESENT**

Orihime was at the Kurosaki's because Rukia had called her earlier that day, asking her to drop by for dinner. She sat on the black leather couch, along with Ichigo while Rukia was on the beanbag facing them. They were having a healthy debate on politics.

"Rukia," Ichigo said after the debate ended, "get us some desert?"

"Sure," Rukia said as she walked over to the kitchen.

Ichigo waited till his wife was out of earshot, "I hear you're back in touch with Ulquiorra?"

"Yes I am," Orihime replied with a smile.

He smiled slightly "Rukia and the others wanted me to convince you to stay away from him. Essentially that's what this dinner was all about."

Orihime nodded. She had a suspicion that it would be something like this.

"People seem to think I can talk 'sense' into you," he shook his head, "I didn't want to be a part of this but Rukia was adamant. I would have told her the truth if I thought she'd listen but she and the rest of the gang firmly believe that he is not good for you. They want you to stay away from him but I'm not going to tell you any of that."

Orihime smiled, grabbed his hand and gave it a gentle squeeze, "I know you won't."

"I can't, not after everything that happened," he replied, "I do however have an advice for you."

"And that would be?"

He looked at her seriously, "Don't let him get away this time. The others may not know it, but I know how much you need him. They weren't there to see you break down, I was. I can't forget that scene. I don't want you to go through that ever again. "

Orihime's eyes filled with tears as she looked at him, "Thank you, Ichigo. You have no idea how much that helped."

He nodded, "Have you told him that you loved him?"

Orihime shook her head, "I can't. I'm scared. I don't want to open a can of worms."

"I understand," he replied.

Soon after, Rukia walked in with Tiramisu and the conversation was steered on to other topics. Orihime however felt torn. On one hand she was upset and angry at her friends' attempted intervention and on the other hand she was happy about Ichigo's support. If only her other friends could look past their prejudices.

* * *

Orihime was at her clinic when her phone rang. The name on the screen set her pulse racing and with a small smile on her lips she answered the call.

"Ulquiorra, hi."

"Hi," he sounded distracted, "Busy?"

"Not really, tell me?"

"What are you doing this Saturday?"

She resisted the urge to squeal her answer, "Nothing. Why?"

"Good. I have to attend a fundraiser. A client of mine wants me to be there to help him with his prospective donors. Mostly I'll be in the company of dull people and will have to listen to even more tedious conversations. Luckily I can bring someone along so, will you do me the honor of bearing with me as my companions bore you death?"

She laughed, "Is that the way you ask someone to accompany you?"

"Would you like me to rephrase?" he mulled.

"No. I got your message the first time," she answered.

"So will you?"

"Will I what?"

"Come with me?" he seemed a little anxious.

"Sure!"

"Great. I'll pick you up at 7.00pm," he said sounding relieved, "See you then!"

"See you!"

"Oh and wear something nice," he said, almost as an afterthought.

"You got it," she answered.

After Orihime disconnected the call, she felt a wave of anxiety overtake her. She was going to see him again! She had carefully avoided seeing him for a while in the hopes that she would have gotten over the ridiculous desire for him and maintain the status quo of their relationship. However her plan hadn't worked. Instead of simmering down, her lust had only increased. In fact she had had some very elaborate wet dreams about him. She would have liked to think that she would be able to control herself by Saturday, but she knew that was just wishful thinking. She had been thinking about him ceaselessly, yearning for him all the time. There was no way that she was going to get over this ache that she had developed for him. Orihime took a deep breath, forcing herself to concentrate on her work and ignore the exhilaration building within her.

* * *

Saturday came as a beautiful spring day. Ulquiorra sat on his couch, staring at the clock as if he could will it to strike 7:00. He was going to see her again. The mere thought of it had kept him awake last night. The knot in his stomach refused to go away. He wanted time to speed up so that he could meet her but also for it to slow down so that he could calm his nerves. Several times over the past few weeks his resolve had weakened and he had almost gone over to meet her, just to see her once again. But then he had held back. It wouldn't do for him to weaken. He had resolved to treat her like a friend.

That was only part of the reason why he was holding back. The other reason why he wasn't willing to act on his wishes was that he was battling his own insecurities. Relationships, regardless of their nature, weren't his strong suit. In his life he had only had five friends, four of whom never knew the truth of his parent's murder. Orihime was the only one he had ever confided into about it and that too had been the cliff notes version. The loss of his parents had wounded him severely and he had, as a result, built a wall around himself.

Over the years he had relaxed a little and had allowed more people to come closer to him than he had as an adolescent, but till date, Grimmjow and Orihime remained the only two people with whom he could truly be himself. And therein lay his biggest insecurity. He depended on them. He had run away from Orihime once and had since then regretted that decision every day. Her absence had cleaved a gaping hole within him. He had forever felt incomplete. It was as if a part of him had always been missing.

When she breezed back into his life, she brought that missing part of him back with her. Now he was scared. He was scared that if he gave into his desires, Orihime would leave him yet again. He didn't think he would be able to handle that. He was terrified of feeling lonely again and therefore he would bury his traitorous thoughts deep within him.

Eventually the clock stuck 5:30pm. With slow deliberate movements he got off the couch and walked over to the bathroom. Forty-five minutes later, he combed his hair and applied gel to it. He then picked up his glasses and put them on. Suddenly he remembered how Loly would insist that he wear contacts. He had tried and hated them. She had thought that he was deliberately putting her idea down. He briefly wondered why he had even dated that woman. It hadn't taken him long to see past the sweet smiles and the charming personality. He had seen the real person soon enough, but he had still hung around. He was willing to put up with her flaws because she was willing to put up with his and he knew he had quite a few of them. Spotting her with Ggio had been unpleasant but not as bad as it probably should have been.

He frowned. For some reason, he found himself thinking about her of late. Despite his best efforts, he couldn't shake off the warning she had given all those weeks ago. He had an uncomfortable feeling that something bad was about to happen. He told himself that it was because she had been pursuing him doggedly, asking for a second chance and begging forgiveness for losing her temper. He kept refusing her stoically, hoping that she would get the hint eventually.

Finally, at around 6:20pm, he left his house and started for Orihime's. The traffic was heavy and he reached her house just as the clock was striking 7:00. Thankful that he didn't have the time to dither, he walked over to the intercom, punched in her access code and went to the elevator. Once the contraption started moving, his nerves started to get the better of him. He took a deep breath and reminded himself that she was just his friend. Although, that didn't stop his heart from beating in an excited rhythm. At her floor, he rang her bell and she opened the door almost immediately. His heart stopped and restarted. She was dressed in emerald green – HIS green.

* * *

When the bell rang at ten minutes to seven, Orihime all but ran to the door only pausing to check her appearance in the full length mirror. She had chosen this dress after a long deliberation. She had purchased it last year simply because the color reminded her of his eyes but she had never found the occasion to wear it. When he had asked her to wear something nice, she had immediately thought of this dress. In her mind this was his color. She wondered if she would be sending some subtle, unintentional signal by wearing this color but then decided that she was overthinking. There was no way Ulquiorra would think that way. She had tried other dresses, but her mind was made up. This was what she wanted to wear.

She nodded once, satisfied, and rushed over to open the door, her fingers almost shaking with anxiety and nervousness. At the door, she paused to take a deep, calming breath and opened the door with a smile.

"Princess!" Chizuru squealed, "You look absolutely divine!"

Orihime gripped the handle tightly as she forced herself to smile, but failed. "Chizuru," she said coldly.

"Going somewhere?" the red-head asked walking in uninvited.

"Yes," she said shortly.

"Awww," Chizuru said settling on the couch, "I was hoping to spend the Saturday night with you."

"No can do," Orihime said still standing by the open door.

Completely missing the subtle action, Chizuru picked up a magazine, "Where are you off to?"

"A party," she replied, trying her best not to slam the door as she closed it.

Chizuru's eyes lit up, "Really? Where? Can I come?"

Orihime bit the inside of her cheek to rein in her impatience. There was no point in hiding, she would see him anyway. Plus, why should she hide, it wasn't like she was doing something wrong. "I'm going to a party with Ulquiorra."

The reaction was instant. The magazine dropped from her hand and her eyes darkened, "You never told me."

"I didn't realize I was supposed to tell you," Orihime somehow managed to control her temper.

"Hime," Chizuru said seriously, "Why don't you understand? He is dangerous. You're too innocent. You don't know what it's like out there."

Orihime's control snapped, "And you do? Excuse me for saying this Chizuru, but you work at a Spa! All you deal with are pampered housewives and other people who can afford that kind of luxury. I on the other hand, work with seriously disturbed people. I work with criminals, sociopaths, psychopaths; people who can and will kill me if I take one wrong step. So pardon me for saying this, I do know the world and I know it better than you."

The red-head stood up, hurt and offended. She had just opened her mouth to say something when the bell rang again. Without giving her a chance to respond, Orihime opened the door to find Ulquiorra standing there, dressed in a chocolate brown tuxedo, his hands in his pockets. He gave her a once over and said, "You look nice."

The compliment dissipated the dark mood that Chizuru had brought forth and she welcomed him in. She saw him pause only for a fraction of a second at the sight of the red-head but he regained his composure before Chizuru could spot anything amiss.

"Ulquiorra Schiffer," Chizuru said icily.

"Chizuru Honsho, I presume?" he replied.

"What exactly are you playing at?" she asked rudely.

"Chizuru," Orihime warned.

Ulquiorra frowned, "I wasn't aware I was 'playing at' something."

She scowled, "The innocent act doesn't suit you, Schiffer."

Ulquiorra shrugged, "If you say so."

"You're not even going to defend yourself?" Chizuru was incredulous.

"I'm not entirely sure what I'm supposed to defend myself against. I don't see anything worth the effort here," he answered calmly.

Orihime managed to stifle the snort. Chizuru wasn't aware of the veiled insult Ulquiorra had just given her.

"Well, whatever," Chizuru huffed and walked out of the apartment. Orihime made no attempt to stop her.

"What was that?" Ulquiorra asked.

"She's very critical of you. She can't get over her prejudice for you," she replied tiredly.

"Most people can't," he replied with a shrug, "But she is slightly different. I think she loves you."

"No she doesn't," Orihime answered, "She wants to own me. She thinks of me as her property. She's confusing possessiveness for love."

Ulquiorra shrugged, "Shall we go?"

She brightened, "Just a minute."

* * *

As soon as she turned Ulquiorra felt his heart drop and a certain other part of him move in response. The silky emerald gown that hugged her body, showing off a flawless figure, also showed most of her toned back, right up to her narrow waist. Her long hair was tied in a messy half bun, with a few strands falling elegantly on her slender neck, emphasizing on her narrow shoulders and the blemish-less skin.

_Shit!_

Why did she have to choose a backless gown? How the hell was he going to keep his thoughts, his eyes and his hands in check? And what of the traitorous thing down below? What the hell was he going to do about that? How was he going to control the enormous hard on that she gave him without even trying? Abruptly he sat down and crossed his legs, both to hide his very evident reaction and to stop himself from going over and burying his face at the crook of her neck or run his fingers along her spine. This party was going to seriously test his resolve.

* * *

Something was wrong. Ever since they left the house, Ulquiorra had seemed aloof. He had kept a steady stream of conversation in the car, as was his custom, to keep her fear at bay. But it had seemed forced. He had asked her a few random questions like had she ever learned to drive (which she had, before the accident), what was going on with her work etc. Once they entered the party, he had all but shut up, speaking only when spoken to. He had introduced her to the host curtly. Orihime knew she would figure out what was bothering him if she could meet his eyes but he was studiously avoiding her gaze.

Later at the table, one donor was asking Ulquiorra about the options available to him and the tax benefits he could avail, should he choose to donate. From the chatty woman sitting next to her, Orihime learned that Ulquiorra's client, who was hosting the party, was the head of the Science department of the University. He needed funds for research in the chemistry department and hence the fundraiser.

Orihime noticed that her wine was over. She decided to refill her drink, and seeing as Ulquiorra was busy with the donor, she figured he wouldn't miss her. She walked over to the buffet table and filled her glass. She paused at the appetizers counter, wondering what to take when someone touched her arm. She turned around to find herself staring at a stranger who'd obviously had a few drinks too many. Wary of him, Orihime took a couple of steps back, extricating her arm from his grasp.

"Has your date abandoned you, little dove?" the man asked with a slurred voice.

Orihime seethed at the condescending tone. "Please excuse me sir," she said curtly and tried to walk away. But he barred her way and moved a little too close. She could smell the alcohol on his breath. She tried to walk sideways, but he barred her way again.

"Come on, little dove," he said leeringly, "what's the hurry? The night is young. We can have some fun, eh?" he finished with a wink.

Disgust and revulsion roiled within her as she coolly replied, "Get lost."

"Spunky! I like that!" he said and licked his lips.

Orihime took a step back only to collide with someone. She turned around to find Ulquiorra standing at her shoulder, his eyes spewing fire. He wrapped a possessive arm around her waist and asked in a low voice, "Is he bothering you?"

Orihime's spirits soared. She smiled and looked at his face, "A bit."

Ulquiorra's hand clutched tighter around her as he stared at the man. Braver men would have quelled under the cold, fierce stare. The man mumbled something about mistaking her for someone and fled the scene. Ulquiorra turned towards her, his hand still at her waist, concern writ large in his eyes.

"Are you alright?" he whispered.

Orihime nodded, unable to speak. Without thinking she placed her hands on his chest. Very gently he tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ears as he said, "I got worried."

"I thought you were busy and hadn't seen what was going on," she answered in a low voice.

"What're you talking about?" he asked cupping her cheek, "My eyes never left you."

Something told Orihime that if she bridged the little distance between them and hugged him now, it would be the right thing to do. His eyes had a soft expression that sent a delicious thrill down her spine. Just as Orihime was about to act on her impulse, Ulquiorra dropped his hands and stepped back. His face was devoid of all expressions.

"Come, let's get back to the table," he said in an odd voice.

* * *

Later that night Orihime lay on her bed, thinking about the little incident at the party. There was something about the way he had touched and looked at her that made her feel that maybe she could make a move. Her instincts told her that if she did, he wouldn't push her away, instead he would respond. But Ulquiorra was a complicated man; she couldn't simply go and tell him that she was insanely attracted to him. Plus he was her best friend. She wouldn't dream of jeopardizing her relationship with him based on an instinct born out of a small incident. He was after all a man. It was quite possible that for a moment all he saw was a woman and not his friend. She believed that as soon as he remembered who she was, he had retreated into his shell.

Orihime turned over in her bed, reliving that touch. Her heart refused to believe the reasons her mind was trying to present. It was convinced that the attraction was mutual. However her mind insisted it wasn't. Undecided and torn over her mind and heart, she tossed and turned for most of the night. It was during the wee hours that she finally came to a decision. She was going to test the waters surreptitiously. If he responded, she would make a move, if not, she would remain a friend.


	12. Chapter 12

Hello friends! Tomorrow is my birthday. So as a birthday gift to myself (and to my readers) I'm doing a double update. One chapter of this and one of Angels & Demons. Enjoy!

This chapter has not been Beta'd.

Sweet Dreams by Eurythmics.

* * *

**Chapter 12**

**PAST**

Orihime's hands flew to her mouth as her eyes widened. "I'm so sorry," she said after a while, "I … I didn't know … Gosh! This is awful."

Ulquiorra looked away from her and stared at the canal. "It is. I can't seem to forget that day," he said in a low voice.

"Do you want to talk about it?" Orihime asked gently.

He remained silent for a while before he started speaking. His voice was so low that Orihime had to lean towards him to hear his words.

"I was thirteen. I remember that my parents had a fight that night," he fell silent after that. A kingfisher swooped down from a branch to grab a small fish from the canal. His brilliant eyes followed the bird, watching it carefully. Only when the little blue-green bird disappeared from the view did he continue.

"It was a rule that when they fought, I had to go to my room. So I was in my room."

He stood up and shoved his hands into his pockets. His arm was now free of its cast. He frowned as he stared into the canal and didn't notice when Orihime came to stand next to him. "I didn't even hear the shots. I had music on with earphones. I still remember the song," he said bitterly, "'Eurythmics' _Sweet dreams_. I hate that song now."

Orihime looked at him, unsure of what to say. The silence stretched for an unbearable period of time before he spoke again. "I came down only because I was hungry. I was wondering why they were taking so long. I found them lying in the living room, soaked in their own blood."

The last words were said in such a low voice that Orihime had to read his lips to make it out.

"In my dreams, I always hear that song playing in the background as I descend the stairs and find them lying there… their eyes open and lifeless. They… they…"

He faltered. Orihime saw a dark shadow cross his face and he appeared to crumble within himself. To her it seemed like he was drowning. Without thinking of how it may be perceived or how he would react to it, she hugged him. All she could think at that moment was that he was terribly lonely. She didn't understand his pain, couldn't, even if she wanted to. But she understood his need for companionship. She understood that he needed to be held. Probably he wasn't hugged in a very long time and the very thought of it disturbed Orihime. So she threw her arms around him and buried her face into his chest.

She felt his entire body stiffen. A couple of heartbeats later, she felt his arms encircle her slowly; almost reluctantly. Gradually his body relaxed, his grip around her tightened and his face was burrowed into her hair. He murmured something inaudible into her hair and pulled her closer. As her body pressed closer to his thin yet strangely muscular one, a strange peace swathed her. All she was aware of was his clean and completely masculine scent. Her knees weakened and her heart beat faster than before. The hug that had started out as a friendly one had long since ceased to be one. She didn't know what it was, but it was beautiful. She didn't want it to end. She wanted to stay lost in him, his arms enveloping her. In them she felt safe.

Without thinking, she pulled him closer. Surprisingly, he complied. His hand moved slowly from the small of her back to her upper back. Orihime arched slightly, her skin breaking into gooseflesh. His face moved down as he gently brushed his cheek against her. Orihime moaned softly, clutching his shirt into tight fists. That's when, all of a sudden, he shot out of her arms. With that Orihime too came to her senses, although she regretted his loss.

"I… I," he ran a hand through his hair nervously, "I'm sorry. I didn't mean for that to happen."

Embarrassed and more than a little confused, she let out a fake and nervous laugh, "Heh! Hey," her voice sounded false and strangely high-pitched, "There's nothing to be embarrassed about! He he! It happens; won't happen again!"

Ulquiorra was avoiding her eyes as he stuffed his hands into his pockets. A few awkward minutes later he said, "Shall we go?"

Orihime agreed more than eagerly.

* * *

Four days later, Ulquiorra was in the locker room when his friends accosted him.

"So," Grimmjow said leaning against the locker next to Ulquiorra's, "Who's she?"

Ulquiorra almost dropped his books, such was his surprise. He was thankful that his face was in the locker because he was sure his shock had reflected on it for a second. Feigning calm, he closed the door and asked, "Who's who?"

"Come on Ulquiorra!" Szayel scoffed, "Don't play dumb!"

Ulquiorra raised an eyebrow.

"You've been acting fucking weird," Nnoitra said, "Even for you. And that's saying something. So who's the chick?"

"Let me get this straight," Ulquiorra said leaning against his locker, "I'm acting 'weird', which in itself is vague as vague gets, and it's got something to do with a 'chick'? By the way, Nnoitra, you do know 'chick' is essentially the young of a chicken?"

Nnoitra's mouth opened, "I didn't know that! So why the fuck do people call girls as chicks?"

"Irrelevant," Szayel said, "He's trying to avoid the issue."

"Yeah," Grimmjow concurred, "It won't do for us to get distracted. So no bullshitting!"

"And you summarized it succinctly," Szayel said pushing his glasses up the bridge of his nose, "You're behaving weirdly and the only reason for it can be a girl."

"Define weird," he charged.

"Well," Grimmjow answered, "You've practically been rushing out of the school as soon as it ends. You seem a little … spacked … no … sparred … no … what was the word Szayel?"

"Spaced-out," the bespectacled boy supplied.

"Yeah, spaced-out," Grimmjow said nodding, "Also you seem … almost happy. It HAS to be a girl. So out with it, who's it?"

"You're all delusional," Ulquiorra said dismissively as he pushed himself off the locker.

Nnoitra barred his way, "Uh uh! You don't fucking get away with all that."

"Precisely," Szayel said.

"Yup, no shit!" Grimmjow added, "We wanna know what the fuck is on?"

"Nothing is 'on'," Ulquiorra said with a shrug, "It's your overactive imagination."

"Yes and I'm the fucking prom queen," Grimmjow said gruffly.

Ulquiorra didn't reply to it.

Szayel spoke again, "Come on! Tell us what is going on?"

"Yeah, we're your friends!" Nnoitra urged.

Ulquiorra sighed, "Fine. I'll tell you. But only if she agrees."

"It is a 'she'!" Grimmjow exulted, "I knew it!"

"Yes, congratulations," Ulquiorra said sarcastically, "But it's not like you'll are thinking."

"Oh! So what is it like?" Szayel said with a grin, "You mean you guys aren't seeing each other?"

"No," he answered, "We're friends."

"RIIIIIGGGHHHTTT!" Grimmjow drawled exaggeratedly, "And who might this 'friend' of yours be?"

"I can't tell you that," he replied, "Not unless I've at least spoken to her about it."

Nnoitra was furious, "What the fuck? Why do you need to ask her?"

"Because of my reputation," he answered seriously, "I don't want her to be the target of malicious rumors that are bound to spread as soon as my name is thrown into the mix. Essentially, I'm protecting her."

Szayel and Grimmjow grinned broadly. The pink-haired boy said, "You like her!"

"What? No," Ulquiorra answered quickly.

"Yes you do," Grimmjow said guffawing, "I can't believe this. Ulquiorra fucking Schiffer is in love!"

"Shut up," he grumbled, "I don't 'love' her."

Nnoitra was laughing manically as Szayel said, "No no, you don't love her. You just want to … what was that you said? Ah yes, 'protect her'."

Ulquiorra shook his head, annoyed. Knowing a lost argument when he saw one, he shoved his hands in his pockets and started to walk.

"Yo wait up!" Grimmjow shouted, "When are we meeting this chick?"

"He needs to _ask _her!" Szayel replied in a singsong voice, causing the trio to collapse into peals of laughter.

With a deep sigh, Ulquiorra walked away from the laughing triad.

* * *

"Orihime!" Tatsuki said snapping her fingers in front of her eyes, "Where are you?"

The auburn haired girl had been thinking about the hug she had shared with Ulquiorra. Tatsuki's action jolted her out of what had almost become her obsession. It had been a week since then but Orihime found herself reliving the moment over and over again. She desperately wanted to hug him once again; just to be sure that she hadn't imagined the magic. She wanted to feel the thrill again, the absolute joy of holding him in her embrace.

"Uh … yes?"

"I asked where are you?" Tatsuki said in an exaggerated voice.

"Nowhere," she replied giggling sheepishly, rubbing her hand at the back of her neck.

"Something is wrong," Ichigo said leaning on the lunch table, "You've been kinda strange off late."

"Eh?" Orihime blinked, "hehehe, I … I don't know what y- you're saying Ichigo."

"What he's saying is that you've been in a world of your own," Chizuru said, "What's up Princess?"

Orihime inhaled deeply and intertwined her fingers below the table to contain her nervousness, "I … I really don't know what you people are talking about."

"Orihime, you really shouldn't try to lie, you know," Uryuu said dryly, "You suck at it."

Orihime looked up and stuttered, "I – I don't …"

"Oh stop it!" Rukia cut in, "Try a different line will you?"

Her hands had started to sweat as she tried a defense but faltered. Her eyes sought out Ulquiorra sitting a few tables away. Sure enough those green eyes were on her, he had understood that she was in trouble. He tilted his head slightly and gave her a silent encouragement.

Her confidence bolstered, she came up with a flawless lie "Nothing really, just that Sora has been having some problems at work. He comes home so stressed. I've been wondering what to do to make him feel better, that's all."

Her friends immediately got concerned and started to come up with ideas that would help Sora feel better. Unbeknownst to them, honey met emerald and a silent message was sent across the lunch hall.

* * *

Yoruichi was in the bath tub, her glorious body submerged under a thick layer of bubbles. A glass of champagne was in her hand and her purple dyed hair was tied on top of her head in a messy do. Her blonde haired fiancé was sitting across her, also submerged and holding a glass of champagne. Yoruichi lifted her leg and trailed her big toe seductively along Urahara's chest. The man smiled and ran his hands on her shin. She put down her flute of champagne on the floor and moved over to him. She kissed his lips passionately and while he slowly moved his hand along the length of her back, his response to the kiss was half-hearted. Backing off, she settled back on her end of the tub and picked up her flute.

"Alright, what's wrong?"

Urahara sighed and took a sip from his champagne, "It's not happening."

Yoruichi raised a brow, "Do I need to do something else?"

"What? No," he said with a small laugh, "I wasn't referring to us. You never fail to arouse me. I meant about them."

"Them?" Yoruichi was confused.

"I'm talking about Schiffer and Inoue; the two don't even talk to each other!"

Yoruichi laughed, "Oh dear! You're still hung up on that? Sorry to inform you but you've lost that bet."

"But that's the thing!" he insisted, "I don't make arbitrary bets. I know what I saw. The chemistry was definitely there. Everything was there, just waiting to happen. So what went wrong? I can't understand! They barely even look at each other."

"Well it didn't happen," Yoruichi grinned, "so now I get to make you do what I want?"

"Not yet, there's still fifteen days to go for three months," he insisted.

"And exactly what's gonna happen in fifteen days that didn't happen in past two and a half months," the beautiful dark skinned woman asked.

"You never know," Urahara said with a shrug.

Yoruichi laughed, "If you do manage to get them to date each other, and they have to be seeing each other mind you, just one casual date doesn't count, then maybe I'll do the seven layer strip tease you've been waiting for," she finished with a wink.

"Ooh!" he said gleefully, "I have an added incentive!"

"You're going to meddle somehow, aren't you?"

"What are you talking about? I don't meddle in other people's lives, I'm just a simple high-school history teacher," he said earnestly.

In response Yoruichi laughed.

* * *

**Sweet dreams are made of this,**

**who am I to disagree?**

_He descended the staircase, his bare feet pattering softly. He was hungry. His mom and dad had been fighting for way too long now. He had skipped lunch; he didn't want to miss dinner as well. _

**I travel the world and the seven seas,**

**Everybody's looking for something.**

_Strange! No matter how much they fought, one would think they'd at least switch the lights on. Groping blindly, he made his way to the kitchen, knocking over a clock in the process. _

**Some of them want to use you**

_There was water on the floor. Why hadn't mom mopped it yet? _

**Some of them want to get used by you**

"_Mom, dad?" he called out. Silence. _

**Some of them want to abuse you**

_He moved towards the light switch, navigating purely by memory when his foot caught something soft and he stumbled. _

**Some of them want to be abused.**

_His hand came over something cold and metallic. There was something soft beneath him and everything was soaking wet. Something was not right. Gripping the metallic thing with both his hands he felt it and realized he was holding a gun. Instantly he dropped it. An empty and sick feeling pooled in his stomach and his juvenile mind painted horrifying pictures. He shot up from his place at the floor and switched on the light. In front of him lay mom and dad, soaked in blood, their faces twisted in grotesque expressions. Their eyes had rolled to the backs of their heads. His clothes and hands dripped with their blood. He stood there frozen for a whole minute before a shriek tore from his lungs._

**Sweet dreams are made of this,**

**Who am I to disagree?**

**I travel the world and the seven seas,**

**Everybody's looking for something ….**

* * *

A shrill ring woke Orihime up. Blinking sleep from her eyes she looked at the illuminated hands on her clock. It was 3:30am. She frowned wondering what had woken her up when the shrill ring started again. She grabbed her phone hastily. Upon seeing the name on the screen wiped all traces of sleep from her as she grinned widely and answered.

"Yes Ulquiorra,"

"Sorry to wake you up," he seemed uncomfortable.

"Not a problem at all," she said softly, "Had the nightmare again?"

"Hmmm," he answered, "Thought of taking you up on your offer."

She smiled widely, "I'm so glad you did."

"Sorry again for disturbing you," he said stiffly.

"Ulquiorra, I'll do this as many times as you want me to," she answered seriously, "so you'll probably have to say a million sorrys. I think it's wise if you knock off the apologies and talk about something else."

"But, won't it disturb Sora?"

She giggled, "Not a chance. It would take an explosion to wake Sora up, that too if it happens under his bed."

After a small pause Ulquiorra spoke again, "I didn't get a chance to tell you, but my friends sort of ambushed me the other day."

Orihime rolled her eyes, "Like mine did today?"

"Pretty much," he answered, his voice beginning to lose the edge, "Long story short, they want to meet you."

"Eh?" she was perplexed, "And you're O.K. with that?"

"I don't know really," He answered, "While I trust them, I'm not sure I want them to meet you. It would only increase my concern for your image four times."

Orihime laughed, "Well, I leave that decision on you. If you're comfortable and trust them, I'm more than willing to meet your friends. But you need to be comfortable about it."

"Thank you Orihime," he said gently, "Thank you for understanding and not thinking that I'm being stupid or irrational."

"Everybody is stupid or irrational at some point in time," she said philosophically, "There's nothing to be embarrassed about it."

"True. So, what did your friends say?"

"Nothing, I brushed them off," she answered, "I'm not sharing you with them."

She almost heard his smile. The two friends lay chatting till the sky had started to change its color.


	13. Chapter 13

I loved penning the conversation between Ulquiorra and his friends in the last chapter. So, in this chapter, I decided to write another conversation between them, this time an adult one. And I had awesome fun doing that as well. This chapter has some Ulquihime fluff and a subtle foreshadowing of some events to come. All in all, I think people are going to love this chapter.

200+ reviews already, which means a shout out is coming up. Thanks to: Kornluv44, Darisy, Cerice Belle, LuluMonk, Nicole Tsukiyomi, TheCatWithTheHat, Cherryvampiress, Xtremefairy, Rin Sessys Girl, Ulquihime 7980, Kohryu, AkuRokuTurkTrainee, guest 1, Adultswim12, aryaputra, lovely, Szerion, Spirit of the Damned, Ichiruki27, Guest 2, guest 3, Ati-Cha, lovely-smile, Anon, randomfan17, Sakura's fire, MontesiaKurosaki6, topamgagktheretopangagk, LittleMargarita, Fairyarah, crono, QueenAlexiel, im ur misconception, guest 4, AutumnSunshine, Zigra, I'llBiteYouToDeath, Ugnyte, XCynicalX, Orihime 4-or-6, GapTeethBlueHair, guest5, venus hawthorne, lovely rain dancer, Belit Lihara, guest6, guest7, Waca, guest8, guest9, guest10, guest11, frawg360, NephandiMan, snowflake, DarkinocensDLT, guest12, SupPeople, guest13, Allytsuki, tayyabarani2002, xBlaZeXXBlissx, chibi-dears, Wulvenbeast, mak sauhang

This chapter hasn't been beta'd.

* * *

**Chapter 13**

**PRESENT**

"'My eyes never left you'," Szayel said with a smirk, "I didn't know you had it in you to be cheesy."

"Shut up," Ulquiorra muttered.

"I still don't know what's the big fucking deal here?" Nnoitra asked, "You like her, tell her."

"It is a big fucking deal," Grimmjow replied as he ordered a refill of everyone's beer, "He's been 'friend-zoned'."

Szayel tsked, "Ooh never nice that. You've my sympathies friend."

Ulquiorra frowned, "I don't need your sympathies. I need suggestions."

"What kind of suggestions?" Szayel asked.

"How do I let her know that I like her, without actually saying it?"

"I thought you'd decided you wouldn't make a move?" Grimmjow frowned.

"Hmmm. But that was before last night," he answered, circling his index finger on the rim of his beer mug, "Things are different now. That's why I called you all here. I need ideas."

"Why would you say things are different?" Grimmjow asked again.

Ulquiorra mused, "I can't say for sure. But something tells me that this attraction might be mutual."

"Ulquiorra," Szayel said with a scowl, "You're planning to hit on your best friend. You need to base it on something more substantial than 'something tells me…'."

"What a horrid sentence," Grimmjow sipped his beer before continuing, "You used 'something' twice, almost back to back."

"Shut up, dick!" Szayel retorted, "We're talking about thing more important than my sentence structure!"

"I still think you should just go to her and tell her that you'd like to fuck her to kingdom come," Nnoitra said seriously.

"Tell me when you pick up a girl with that line," Szayel replied.

"That's exactly what I told Cirucci," Nnoitra grinned.

"Cirucci doesn't count," Grimmjow said with a wave of his hand, "You two are together for the sole purpose of fucking like rabbits. We're talking about something more meaningful here."

"What the fuck is more meaningful than sex?" Nnoitra asked incredulously, "I mean think about it, pleasure, work out, de-stressing, pass time, bonding and includes some conversation too. I mean it's everything rolled into one neat fucking package."

"You're hopeless," Szayel scoffed.

"If you all are done with the detour, can we get back to the problem at hand?" Ulquiorra said finally.

"Ah sorry," Grimmjow said, "Maybe I should ask Nel. Gals dig this stuff."

"Isn't Nel close to Orihime?" Szayel asked, "Maybe she can figure out what Orihime is thinking. That way we can plan his moves?"

Grimmjow sighed, "Nel has been shipping these two since high school. She even has a couple name for them, UlquiHime."

Ulquiorra's eyes widened, "What?"

Nnoitra guffawed, "UlquiHime? That's too fucking cute!"

"Screw you," Ulquiorra deadpanned.

"Don't ask," Grimmjow replied wearily, "You guys are like her bloody obsession. She thinks that you're made for each other and that you guys should start fucking soon and make orange haired and green eyed babies."

Ulquiorra sputtered, "What the …?"

"Why do you think she pretended to be surprised when you told her that you've met Orihime again?" Grimmjow continued, "She'd heard about it from Orihime earlier but she wanted to see your true reaction. She was testing you, apparently if you told her yourself, she would know that you're interested in Orihime."

"That doesn't even make sense," Szayel was confused.

"To you and me it doesn't," Grimmjow answered with a shrug, "But to her it makes perfect fucking sense. What can I say; my girl's a little eccentric."

"So basically you're saying that Nel can't dig the information from Orihime?" Szayel asked.

Grimmjow shook his head, "Basically I'm saying that you can't trust jackshit Nel says when it comes to these two. Whatever she says is 100% bound to be distorted by her shipping glasses."

"So that option is out," Szayel said, "What else can be done?"

"I'll still say …," Nnoitra began.

"No," all three men chorused.

"Tch! Pussies!" the one-eyed man muttered.

Ignoring their friend Szayel continued, "I'm no expert when it comes to women, but I'd say, take her out for dinners, give her flowers, gifts etc. What say Grimmjow?"

Grimmjow nodded, "Yup that always works with Nel."

"No, I don't want to do something so obvious," he said shaking his head, "If what I'm thinking is wrong, I would want to be able to remain her friend without any awkwardness creeping in."

Nnoitra leaned on the table, "How can you remain friends with a chick you desperately wanna screw?"

Ulquiorra gave his friend a scathing look, "You're disgusting."

"Yeah, he's filthy but for once I agree with the tall oaf here," Grimmjow said, "this is not going to be easy."

"I wouldn't have called you all if I thought it was easy," he said shuffling in his seat to find a comfortable position.

A waitress came over to ask if they wanted anything. Once she left, Szayel continued, "Fine, then do what my boyfriend did. Be subtle. You know, an occasional touch here, a brush there."

"Go on," Ulquiorra urged when Szayel had stopped speaking.

"That way, if she likes you, she'll be driven to the point where she has to say or do something. And if she doesn't, well no harm done. You can always chalk those touches up to accidents."

"I like," Grimmjow grinned.

"Too fucking slow," Nnoitra replied.

Ulquiorra nodded, the idea definitely had its merits.

* * *

They were in front of Orihime's apartment complex. Ulquiorra tossed the keys at Orihime who caught it looking very surprised.

"What?" she asked perplexed.

"Drive," he said shortly.

"I can't drive," she answered nonplussed, "You know that."

He walked over and stopped merely inches away from her, "You told me you had learned to drive," his voice was low, carrying a hint that set Orihime's pulse racing.

She swallowed the lump in her throat and said, "I did, but I haven't driven in six years Ulquiorra! I can't!"

"Yes you can," he assured her in the same silky seductive voice that was wreaking havoc on Orihime's nerves.

"No," she was surprised at how squeaky her voice sounded. Clearing her throat she continued, "I'm scared."

He cupped her cheek in one hand and trailed his thumb slowly along her chin, "Do you trust me?"

Unable to speak, she nodded.

"Then have faith that I won't let anything happen to you," he said softly.

What the hell was he doing to her? Her legs had turned to jelly, she couldn't think. Heat pooled in the lower half of her body and her mind had gone fuzzy. Through a haze she spoke, "I… I…,"

"Drive," he said squeezing her hand slightly.

Unable to muster up enough coherent thoughts to protest, she nodded. He opened the door and guided her in. He quickly instructed her to adjust the steering wheel, the seat, the mirrors and reminded her which was the brake and which was the accelerator. He then patted her hand reassuringly and walked over to the passenger seat. He adjusted his seat and fastened his seat belt. With a small nod he urged her to start the car. It took her a couple of tries because her hands were shaking so much, but she managed to get the key into the key hole.

"Orihime, relax," Ulquiorra said in a soft but firm voice, "You don't have to drive a lot, drive just a hundred feet, that's all. But I need you to make a start."

Orihime nodded, her lips set into a tight line. She turned the key in the ignition and started the car, but was immediately overtaken by a fresh bout of trembling. Ulquiorra leaned over and patted her shoulder.

"Go on," he said, "You're doing great."

She smiled weakly and took the car out of parking. She held the steering wheel in a death grip as she slowly applied the accelerator. At first the car wouldn't move because she hadn't applied enough pressure but then suddenly it lurched forward. Stone cold panic grabbed Orihime as she slammed the brake with all her might.

"Go on," Ulquiorra repeated calmly, "You can do it, just another ninety feet to go."

Orihime gave a half laugh before resuming the pressure on the accelerator. The car had barely moved when she slammed the brakes yet again. She looked at Ulquiorra apologetically as small beads of sweat had started to form on her forehead. Ulquiorra moved the stick, fished out a kerchief from his pocket and wiped her face.

"Remember what you told me once?" he said gently.

Unsure of what he was referring to, she shook her head.

"Our demons are big because we make them so by avoiding them. Once we tackle them head on, they are easily vanquished."

Orihime recollected her words. She had told them to him when he was having troubles dealing with his parents' death. She had helped him handle his fear. She had made her demon big by avoiding driving and now Ulquiorra was trying to help her handle her own demons. He was forcing her to face and vanquish her fears. Inadvertently a couple of tears escaped her eyes. Gently he wiped them.

"Face your demons Orihime, drive."

She bit her lip and nodded. Her mind firmly made up, she put the car back into gear and hit the accelerator. 'Face your demons Orihime!' she chanted those words in her mind like a mantra as she put all of her concentration on moving the car up to the fire hydrant that would roughly mark hundred feet. Finally at the hydrant, she hit the brakes. She put the car into parking and shot out of it, without a second's delay. Moments later, Ulquiorra was in front of her, his eyes reflecting a fierce pride.

"You did it," he said softly.

Shivering, crying and laughing at the same time, Orihime said, "I did! Thanks to you, I did!"

Not pausing to think, she flung her arms around him, thanking him over and over again. He responded, seemingly without any hesitation. Feelings of peace, security, bliss, covetousness and something else that she was unfamiliar with overwhelmed her. Her eyelids drifted shut as she let herself enjoy the feeling of his taut and muscular body against her gentler curves. It had been a while since she had been with a man, let alone one this attractive and tempting. It felt good. She let her head rest in the crook of his neck and inhaled his scent. It was clean and woody and it sent a delicious shiver down her spine. Gently Ulquiorra pulled her closer, rubbing his nose against her temple. Orihime moaned slightly and clutched his shirt. One of his hands rested at the small of her back while the other slid up, his fingers tracing her spine. She arched into him, allowing him access and he took advantage. He dipped his head and let his lips ghosted along her neck inhaling her scent deeply.

A catcall caused the two to break apart. To Orihime's intense mortification, the catcaller was a neighbor of hers. Heat flooded her cheeks as she looked from her grinning neighbor to the expressionless face of Ulquiorra. A melee of emotions went through Orihime's mind none of which she was prepared to deal with. So she did the only thing that made sense to her at that point, she turned around and bolted. She didn't have to look back to know that Ulquiorra followed. She ran up to her apartment complex and hit the elevator button. Fortunately for her it opened immediately. She got in and hit her floor, praying that the doors shut before Ulquiorra came. The doors shut just as he came into view. Thanking God for small mercies, she ran into her apartment and shut the door. Relief flooded her as she slid down the door and slumped on the floor. She barely had time to examine her confusing reaction and the implications of what had happened when there was a patient, persistent knock.

"Orihime," his voice came from the other side, "I know you're right there."

"Please Ulquiorra," she said in a surprisingly steady voice.

"What?" he sounded a little agitated.

"I need time," she answered.

"Fine, but we need to talk."

"Yes we do," she replied weakly, "But not right now. I can't. I need some time to think."

"Alright, call me when you're ready."

She heard his retreating foot-steps and sighed. What had just happened? Hadn't she planned on trying to figure out what was on Ulquiorra's mind? Then why had she run away when he made it obvious? Wasn't that what she had wanted? She had been yearning for Ulquiorra for close to four months now, so what exactly had made her tuck tail and run?

_You weren't expecting it._

The answer came from nowhere but she knew it to be true. She had been hoping and praying that Ulquiorra would respond in kind but she hadn't really thought it to be possible. So when he had, she hadn't known what to do. This was who she was, despite all her bravado, when it came to things that mattered, she was a chicken. She hadn't been strong enough to tell Ichigo about the crush she had harbored for the longest of time. She hadn't been able to stand up to her friends for Ulquiorra as they had bad mouthed him. She hadn't had the courage to tell Ulquiorra how she felt. She didn't have it in her to face Sora's death. And now, she was scared of facing the consequences of the events of this evening. She sat there, hunched in a ball and wept tears of frustration.

She had read it in his eyes, had seen it on his face, and had felt it in his touch; he wanted to take their relationship to the next level. He had made his intentions obvious. It wasn't him who was the problem, it was her. She was inordinately happy about it and that scared her. She didn't know if she was prepared for it. She lay down on the floor, her back pressed against the door, crying. She didn't even know when she had fallen asleep.

* * *

Ulquiorra punched a pillow in frustration. Ten years! He had taken more than ten years to make a move on the only person he had ever desired, and finally when he did, he didn't know what to make of the response. She had responded to him, melted in his arms and that had made him hopeful. But then she had run away! What the hell was that supposed to mean? She had asked for time and he had agreed to it. After all he was a patient man but damn! Ten years was a long time and he didn't think he was to blame if his patience was running a little low. He needed an answer and he needed it now. He had spent the last few hours tossing and turning in his bed, torn between his desire to keep his word and wait patiently for her to call, and to run over and demand an answer.

Suddenly his phone beeped. He jumped up and grabbed the phone from the bed stand. Without his glasses, the text appeared hazy. So he leaned over and grabbed them as well, his eyes falling on the digital clock that proudly declared 12:27am. Suppressing a groan he put on his glasses and opened the text. It was yet another profuse apology from Loly. It had begun to get annoying and in his current state, it took a great deal of discipline from him to not call her and give her a piece of his mind. Tsking in irritation he deleted the text, dumped his phone and his glasses on the bed stand and lay down on the bed. It was a while before he fell asleep.

A persistent ring woke him from his dreamless slumber. Blinking his sleep away from his eyes, he saw that it was still dark outside. The clock told him it was 4:34am. Frowning he picked up his phone and answered, not knowing who was on the other side.

"Hello?" he said groggily.

"Ulquiorra?"

Sleep left him immediately, "Orihime?"

"Sorry about waking you up," she sounded tentative.

"It's absolutely alright," he answered, hoping he didn't sound too eager.

"You were right, we need to talk."

"You're ready?" his heart thumped so loud he was sure she could hear it.

"I think so. But we can't be having this conversation on phone, can we?" she laughed nervously, "Meet me tomorrow, after work."

"Yes, what time do you get off? I'll pick you up."

"No!" she said a little too quickly, "No, I … I'll meet you. Peet's. 7pm sounds ok?"

"Perfect."

"Well see you then. Have a good night, or what's left of it," she added with a small laugh.

"You too."


	14. Chapter 14

LYTO is coming to an end. Not much left, 8-10 chapters at the most. Once this is over, I will start on a new, as yet unnamed Ulquihime. It is a fairly complex fantasy love story and it requires a lot of research on my part. I'm doing intense study at the moment and fleshing out the plot. The basic outline of the story is as follows:

_Orihime is a fashion journalist and a historic romance novel writer whose life has hit a rut. Her career is stagnant and her muse has deserted her. Ulquiorra is a warrior who follows a strict code of honor. His life belongs to his master. The two weren't even supposed to meet. However, in one fateful evening, something magical happens and their worlds collide. AU._

Also, I have asked RabbitBleachFan to read this particular chapter. In case she feels that this chapter is too close to her latest chapter of "There's a first time for everything", I will change some details.

Edit: **(10/20/2012): **RabbitBleachFan has read the chapter and is fine with it. Thank you Bunny-Chan for taking the time to read my chapter. :)

Beta: Cerice Belle.

* * *

**Chapter 14**

**PAST**

"I need the assignments within the next ten days," Urahara said to a class full of groaning students. Ignoring the protests, he continued, "You'll not be working with your regular partners. I'm assigning new partners to you all. The list is on the notice board, check it."

Saying so the blonde man walked out. All the students gathered around the notice board to find out who was assigned to whom. Ulquiorra hated the pushing, pulling and general unruliness that occurred in such occasions, so he stood back and waited for the crowd to dissipate. In the resultant confusion he caught Orihime' s eyes and felt the corners of his lips twitch into an inadvertent smile. She had seen the notice and seemed pleased about it. She winked at him and skipped over to her place. He watched her as she picked up her bag and capered out of the classroom.

Once everyone had left, Ulquiorra walked over to the notice at a leisurely pace and looked for his name. There it was, below Sang, Cho; Shciffer, Ulquiorra. And next to his name was the name he had hoped but not expected; Inoue, Orihime.

* * *

"You're paired with Ulquiorra Schiffer?" Chizuru screamed making half the lunch hall turn to look at them. Then in a softer voice she said, "I'm also in the history class, why didn't he pair you with me? I'm going to ask him to change it and make me your partner."

"No you'll not," Orihime said in a tone sharper than she intended it to be. Then in a placating tone she said, "I'm perfectly comfortable working with him."

"Orihime," Ichigo said seriously, "That guy is not the best person you should be around. I don't know what Urahara was thinking when he appointed him as your partner. He's just …"

"Ichigo," Orihime said cutting off his diatribe, "I'll be fine. You guys are just worrying too much."

"And we have very good reason for it," Ichigo insisted, "I know you like to forgive people and try to see the best in everyone, but trust me when I say this, Ulquiorra Schiffer isn't worth it."

"I assume you know him very well and are speaking from experience?" Orihime asked sweetly.

"No, but his general reputation …," Ichigo started.

"Your general reputation is that you're short-tempered, confrontational, unnecessarily aggressive and domineering. Does that mean that you're someone that should be avoided at all cost?" Orihime replied.

"Fine Orihime," Ichigo said with a small smile, "You win. But promise us, you'll only work with him in the library. Don't call him to your home. "

Orihime smiled and agreed, her mind already painting the pictures of her spending time with Ulquiorra working on the assignment. It was only later in the day that she realized that Ichigo had been protective of her. Strangely, the thought only brought a small smile on her face. She felt none of the thrill or warmth that she would have expected to feel. She reasoned that maybe it was because he had been critical of her best friend. That definitely explained her lack of reaction.

* * *

Ulquiorra parked his car in a small alley that was some distance away from her house. He picked up the bag from the passenger seat and got out of the car. While getting down he noticed that the lace of his sneakers had come undone. Tying it he stood up and straightened his clothes. He had been very careful in choosing today's wardrobe. He wanted to look casual and yet not overly so. Thus, after a lot of deliberation, he had chosen a blue T-shirt, black jeans and a grey sweat shirt. He licked his lips nervously and took a deep breath.

"Relax," he whispered to himself, "It's just an assignment. It's not like you haven't met her before."

That did little to quell his nervousness. After all, it was the first time he was meeting her at her place. Of course they spent hours in the park together, but that wasn't as personal as this. This time they weren't meeting on neutral grounds. Granted he was going there for the assignment but he was going to her house and it was a big deal. After all, she was the only person he'd ever developed a crush on.

He walked the distance to her home and rang the doorbell. A tall, brown-haired, and medium built man opened the door.

"Ulquiorra, right?" he said with a bright smile that instantly reminded him of her.

"Sora," it wasn't a question.

Sora nodded and moved out of the way, "I've heard a lot about you. Come in."

He walked in, took off his shoes and put them on the shoe rack. Adjusting the bag strap he walked to the living room. His eyes fell on Orihime and for a moment he forgot to breathe. She was dressed in a sleeveless white dress with a modest neckline, a thin, black belt with a silver buckle and knee-length flowing skirt. She looked like a princess, _his_ princess.

"Ulquiorra!" she chimed, "Come here, sit. Coffee?"

He nodded and sat down on the couch. Orihime turned, her skirt twirling, and walked over to the kitchen. As Orihime went out of his sight, he relaxed slightly. He felt the couch depress slightly and he turned to find Sora sitting on the couch.

"So," Sora said conversationally, "You like my sister?"

Ulquiorra managed to keep a straight face, although it was tough. How the hell had he guessed? He took his time to think but then decided to be honest with the older man, "Yes I do."

Sora nodded, "I thought so."

"May I ask how did you know it?"

"I was seventeen once," Sora replied chuckling.

Ulquiorra nodded, unsure of what to reply. He could hear Orihime singing in the kitchen.

"Make sure you don't hurt her, ever," Sora said casually, "Otherwise you'll have me to answer to."

"I won't," he whispered slowly.

The conversation was interrupted when Orihime came in with three cups of steaming coffee. Sora took his and stood up.

"Well, I'll leave you kids to do your assignment. I'll be in the bedroom, holler if you need me."

"Will do," Orihime answered as she settled on the space her brother had just emptied.

Meanwhile Ulquiorra had reached over for the cup of coffee. He was about to sip it when something smelled … different. There was something was in the coffee that shouldn't be. He sniffed it surreptitiously. There it was! Something that wasn't quite right. It was faint, but it was definitely there. He looked at Orihime who seemed to be oblivious of her surroundings as she sipped hers and arranged the books in front of her. His eyes then fell on Sora who stood by the book shelf, trying to find a magazine for himself, sipping on his beverage nonchalantly. Ulquiorra shook his head slightly, he must be imagining it. He was just being finicky and nervous.

He didn't give it a second thought as he sipped on his coffee. Because he had been telling himself that there was nothing wrong with it, he took a hearty gulp and instantly choked at the taste. His emerald eyes flew open wide as he realized what it was that he had smelled. There was basil in it. _BASIL? Who the hell put basil in their coffee?_

Somehow he managed to swallow the vile tasting thing and blinked the tears that had come into his eyes. Next to him, Orihime was muttering to herself, completely unaware of the mini crisis that he was having. His eyes met Sora's, who was about to step into the bedroom. The man lifted his mug, as if to say cheers, with a downright impish gleam in his eyes that was eerily like his sister's. Despite himself, Ulquiorra smirked slightly.

As Sora went into the bedroom, Ulquiorra put down his coffee on the table, "Carrot-top, this is undrinkable."

"What? Why?" she was perplexed.

"You put basil in there," he replied calmly.

"Yeah, so?"

"What 'so'?"

"I mean I put basil in there, so?"

He couldn't believe it. In would be calm voice he said, "Coffee and basil don't usually go together."

"Says who?"

He blinked a couple of times trying to process what he had heard, "What?"

"Oh you're one of those huh?" she said waving her hand airily.

"One of those?" he repeated, his brain refusing to process the events.

She shrugged, "You know the ones with the boring traditional taste buds."

"You're insane," he answered finally.

"Glad at least you haven't changed your opinion about me," she answered dryly, "Simple joys in life."

"I think we should get on with the assignment," he said in an effort to change the subject.

The next couple of hours passed pleasantly in her company, although Ulquiorra was sure that the basil laced coffee had scarred him for life.

* * *

Orihime's heart was beating at an erratic rhythm although she couldn't understand why. What on Earth was wrong with her? She couldn't take her eyes off him. He was sitting on the couch, carefully reading the summary for the assignment that she had prepared, making a note here and a remark there. She couldn't help but notice the way his jet black hair fell against his pale face. She noticed the way he had pushed his sleeves which revealed his muscular and toned forearm. She noticed his long, thin fingers that looked like they belonged to a piano player. She noticed the way the navy blue T-shirt contrasted against his marble skin.

Inexplicably she was overtaken by the intense desire to touch him. She wanted to run her fingers through his hair just to see if it was as silky as it looked. He was completely absorbed in his work, so Orihime took the opportunity to reach out and grab his hand. However, just as she was about to touch him, he looked at her. She hastily grabbed a pencil from the coffee table and started scribbling on her notebook. She felt heat creeping up her cheeks and wished that Ulquiorra would look away but no, he was staring at her fixatedly, his eyes slightly narrowed.

"Is something wrong?" he asked finally.

"Uh, no. Why would you say so?" she knew she sounded hurried and she hated herself for that.

"Your face is the color of your hair," he stated with his usual bluntness.

Orihime swallowed, hoping that her face wouldn't betray any more than it already had, "N-No, No, nothing's wrong. Y-You're just i-imagining things."

"If you say so," he didn't sound even remotely convinced.

Glad that he had decided to let the matters be, Orihime buried herself behind her notebook, avoiding his keen eyes. Ulquiorra continued to look at her for a while before shrugging and resuming his work.

* * *

Later that night, after Ulquiorra had left, Sora and Orihime sat for dinner. She tried her best to ignore the knowing smile on Sora's lips but the gleam in his eyes was infuriating her. Finally she reached her limit. She clanged her fork loudly on her plate and leaned on the table.

"Alright, what's going on?" she demanded.

"With what?" he asked innocently.

"Why are you grinning?"

"I'm not."

"You are."

"Not."

"Yes."

"No."

"Yes."

"No."

"Sora!"

"Hime!"

"Arrrgh! Stop it!" she screamed, "I want to know."

At the other end of the table, Sora collapsed into peals of laughter causing Orihime to fling a paper napkin at him.

"Alright alright!" he said holding up his hands, "I'll tell you. I was smiling because I think I know what's gotten into my baby sister."

She scowled, "First, I'm not your 'baby sister', I'm seventeen now! I'm almost an adult. So please, stop treating me like a kid. And second, nothing's 'gotten into me'."

"Are you sure?" Sora asked in a sing-song voice.

"Yes, positive!"

"Then tell me," Sora asked casually, "Why did you dress up today?"

"Dress up?"

Sora nodded, "Yes. You know, you're usually dressed in a pair of jeans and a top. But today you wore something fairly… how do I put it, dressy? I wonder why?"

Orihime waved her hand, "You're reading too much into nothing. I just felt like wearing that dress, so I did. It wasn't like I was dressing up for Ulquiorra or anything."

"Interesting," he said exaggeratedly, "I was merely asking for the reason you chose to dress that way. I never said you had dressed up for him. Wonder why you jumped to that conclusion though?"

For the second time in the evening, Orihime felt heat creeping up her cheeks. She mumbled something incoherent and ran away. As Sora watched his little sister flee, a multitude of emotions rose within him. From what he had seen and heard of Ulquiorra, he knew that the guy was a keeper. He was happy for her that she had found someone like him. He also felt a sense of loss. When had his baby sister grown so much? It felt like it was yesterday when he had changed her diapers or wiped drool from her cute and chubby little face. He was bursting with joy that his sister found love. He knew that he was most probably going to be alone all his life and he never regretted it. If it would make Orihime smile, he was willing to lay down his life. So he was happy that his sister had found the bliss that he wasn't destined to find.

But he was also jealous. For years Orihime had nurtured a crush on Ichigo but Sora had never felt envious of him. Perhaps because he had always known that one day the crush would wear off. But Ulquiorra was different. Orihime had fallen in love with him and from the way he had looked at her, Ulquiorra loved her deeply too. The two hadn't realized it yet and he wanted them to realize it on their own, so he wouldn't interfere, but the fact was, Ulquiorra had claimed his sister's heart. A place where till now, only he had resided. Now he had to share it with the green-eyed boy and it wasn't a very pleasing thought.

Sora gave a deep sigh and stood up to gather the plates and clean up.


	15. Chapter 15

****Sorry for the delay in update. Blame it on pure fangirling. I was busy drooling over a couple from a TV Series. AJKSBJHSBBHDSJHBD they are sooo cuteeee! On top of it, I also FINALLY saw Avengers so another fangirling session was on. On top of it, my entire family has the flu. So I was kinda not in writing mode.

A small but very important chapter is here. I won't say much except enjoy!

Oh and I'm going to resume working on Trust to Hope and Angels & Demons. Also working on "**LOST IN TIME**", the new Ulquihime that I was talking about. Once I have about 3-4 chapters of that fic ready, I'll start publishing.

Thanks a ton everyone.

* * *

******Chapter 15**

**PRESENT**

Peet's was perhaps one of the most romantic restaurants in Karakura. Situated atop a small hillock, it was made almost entirely of grey slate rock with vines creeping up on the walls in strategic places. A set of crudely cut staircase led up to the restaurant. An artificial waterfall tumbled next to staircase, adding to the serene ambiance. Inside a hearth burned in the center with booths surrounding it. Each booth offered complete privacy because the hearth shielded them.

Personally Orihime was very happy to have chosen that place for something so monumental. However the words that she needed to say were not something she was too happy about. In fact, she hadn't been able to figure out what she would say to him. Her mind had drawn a complete blank. After she had hung up on the previous night, she hadn't been able to sleep at all. She'd spent hours in front of the mirror practicing various ways in which to tell him what was on her mind but nothing seemed right. She had a million things that she wanted to say and words simply weren't cutting it. As she tried to find the right words and emotions, she oscillated between seeming too eager to not interested to desperate to extremely casual. Nothing was working.

Now she was at the bus stop, about to walk over to Peet's and she still hadn't managed to find the right words. She had changed and put on make up at her clinic before leaving. She was dressed in a pale pink sequined, cowl necked, dress that was just above her knees. She had left her hair open, with her bangs clipped behind. She'd chosen a pair of silver hoops for her ears and a silver bracelet. She had finished the look with a pair of silver heels. She was sure that she looked exactly like she wanted to look.

She walked the short distance from the bus stop to the restaurant. Just the sight of Ulquiorra's car at the parking lot made her stomach do a flip-flop. She inhaled deeply and tried to steady her nerves. She pulled out her compact from her purse and checked her reflection again just to be sure. Satisfied she nodded and tried to smile. Unfortunately her nervousness got the better of her and the smile ended up looking like a grimace. She turned around the corner and was about to start climbing the stairs when a couple standing on the landing caught her eyes. She would recognize that silhouette anywhere. It was Ulquiorra and she assumed that the black haired woman who stood in front of him was Loly. They looked like they were fighting. As Orihime watched, Loly's had shot out and clutched Ulquiorra's sleeve.

_Hands off my man!_ Orihime's mind screamed,_ You've had your chance, you blew it. Now he's mine._

Jealousy and rage overshadowed nervousness as Orihime quickly climbed the fifteen odd stairs that separated her and the two. In the meantime Ulquiorra had jerked his hand off and was telling her something. She reached them and stood next to him, glaring at Loly.

"Hello Loly," she said icily.

"Orihime," Loly's voice dripped venom, "What are you doing here?"

"I should be asking you that," she replied tartly.

"I don't answer to whores like you," the black haired woman retorted.

"Loly!" Ulquiorra said sharply.

"Stay out of this Ulquiorra," Orihime interjected, "Did you just call me a whore?"

"Yes I called you a whore, do you know why? Because you're here trying to steal my man from me," she snapped.

"Loly, shut up!" Orihime could feel Ulquiorra's anger boiling over.

"I'm warning you woman," Orihime said, now genuinely angry, "You're crossing a line."

"Really? How much more can you possibly harm me slut?"

For the first time in her life, Orihime's anger got the better of her and her hand acted of its own accord. Before she could stop herself, her hand contacted Loly's cheek in a resounding slap. The black-haired girl's head turned and her eyes had shut on the impact. Comprehension of her action was just dawning on Orihime when suddenly she felt a pair of hands shove her hard.

* * *

Ulquiorra's eyes flew wide in horror as he watched Orihime lose her balance and fall. Unfortunately she had been standing at the edge of the stairs and the shove threw her off them. She tried to break her fall with her hand but it didn't work and before she could control herself, she rolled down the staircase. She came to a stop at the base of the stairs. The world stopped for Ulquiorra as he watched crowd gather around her.

"Oh no!" Loly's panicked voice broke his trance, "I'm so sorry Ulquiorra! I – I didn't mean to – Oh my God, what have I done!"

He clenched his fist to stop himself from hitting Loly, "Get lost before I kill you," his voice was barely above a whisper. Without turning to look at her, he ran down the stairs and shoved the people surrounding her.

Orihime was breathing shakily, covered in wounds, but was conscious. He crouched next to her and scooped her up in his arms gently, "Orihime."

"Ul- Ul- Ulquiorra," she said slowly.

"Shh! Don't talk," he said gently, "Someone call an ambulance!" he screamed at the crowd.

There was a reply from the crowd but it didn't register in Ulquiorra's mind. All he could see was her. Slowly he lowered his head and pecked her on her lips. A faint smile came on to her face before she lost consciousness.

* * *

"We should fucking have that wench arrested," Grimmjow said furiously.

They were sitting at the Hospital. In the ambulance, Ulquiorra had called Grimmjow who had called everyone else.

"First we need to be sure that Orihime is alright," Nel said firmly. Being a paralegal, she knew what she was talking about "She is the person who needs to testify."

"Ulquiorra was right there wasn't he?" Szayel snapped, "He is an eye-witness. We have solid case against that woman. She'll be in for assault."

"Don't let that fucking bitch get away with this Ulquiorra," Nnoitra growled.

"Yes but an eye witness alone will not do much good;" Nel replied calmly, "Orihime has to press charges. If the victim is alive, then it is the victim's prerogative to file a complaint."

"But there were a whole fucking bunch of people there who saw what happened," Grimmjow sounded annoyed.

"And all they'll do is corroborate her story, which makes her case water tight," Nel answered.

All the while Ulquiorra sat on the bench in stunned silence. His extremities had gone numb. There was an indistinguishable buzz in his ears and his mouth had gone dry. He could hear his heart thudding and his mind was blank. He couldn't think of a single thing to say or do. He had no idea for how long he had been sitting. The presence of his friends registered somewhere in the periphery of his mind. All he could concentrate on was a scratch on the wall. It looked like something had hit or brushed by it, peeling the paint off. After what felt like eons, someone shook his arm.

"Ulquiorra, the doctor is here," Nel whispered gently.

He looked up to find a smallish woman standing in front of him, "She's out of danger."

Those were the sweetest words he had ever heard. All at once, the world around him became alive again. Oblivious to Ulquiorra's state of mind, she continued.

"She's suffered a concussion, a broken wrist, few bruised ribs, and has torn a muscle in her shin but overall, she's fine. She just needs complete bed rest as of now, and pain killers."

"Can we see her?" Nel asked.

"Yes but only two at a time please," the doctor answered, "and don't stay for long. She needs her rest. We'll discharge her tomorrow morning."

Nel nudged Ulquiorra, "Go. You need to meet her alone. We all can wait."

Everyone nodded in agreement. Ulquiorra walked in to her cabin. She was reclining on her bed, swathed in bandages and looking exhausted.

"Hi," she said weakly.

"Hi," he replied, sitting on her bed, "How do you feel?"

"Peachy," Orihime said with a tired grin.

Ulquiorra smirked slightly. He grasped her uninjured hand in his and ran his thumb over it.

"Orihime," he whispered after a while, "I'm sorry."

She frowned, "What for?"

"You … you're hurt because of me. If it hadn't been for me, Loly wouldn't have …,"

"Ulquiorra," she cut him off, "Shut up!"

A brief silence followed and Orihime spoke again, "Sora used to say that nothing comes for free. Everything comes for a price. Given what I get in return, I've actually paid a very small price."

Ulquiorra's eyes widened as he figured out the implication of what she was saying.

"Orihime …," he started but couldn't find words to finish. Instead he scooted closer to her. His heart thudded loudly in his ears as he bridged the distance between them and put his lips on hers. She didn't move an inch. Her eyes closed instinctively as she opened up to his kiss. He cupped her face tenderly as he deepened the kiss.

For Orihime, it was a promise; an unspoken oath; a precursor of things to come. It was a sign that she was no longer alone. For Ulquiorra, it was the first drop of rain on a parched land. The kiss didn't have passion, it didn't involve tongue. But it was admittedly the most beautiful and tender thing that either of them had ever experienced. When Ulquiorra pulled back, a beautiful smile played on her face.

"Do we still need to talk?" she teased but Ulquiorra didn't miss the feeble quality of her voice.

"No," he answered, "Go to sleep now. You'll be discharged tomorrow morning."

Orihime smiled and nodded. She hit the button and straightened her bed. Ulquiorra bent down and pecked her forehead.

"Sleep well," he whispered.

She took his hand in hers and kissed his palm, "Sorry for scaring you today."

He nodded, "Hope this is the last time you do so."

She sighed and within moments was asleep. Ulquiorra stood there, his hands in his pockets, looking at the one woman who meant more to him than the entire World. He was still reeling from the aftermath of what had happened. While he was extremely pleased about the outcome, he wished it hadn't come at the cost of so much pain to the woman he loved.


	16. Chapter 16

Yay, update!

I would like to reiterate that I would be going on a hiatus in the months of December and January. Therefore I have a question to ask you all. Should I hold off the publishing of my new Ulquihime "**Lost in Time**" till my return or should I publish a couple of chapters before I leave? Drop in your opinions please.

A particular anonymous reviewer has been very worried about 'unnecessary drama' in this fic so this is my response to him/her. There are a few more things up my sleeve but I don't deem them 'unnecessary' because they will ultimately be helpful in tying the plot and the loose threads. My plots are usually very well thought out and I rarely include something that doesn't serve a purpose one way or the other.

As always, R&R.

PS: I'm sorry I've been a slob about replying to my reviewers but I'm actually a little hard pressed for time. I will respond to you all- eventually.

* * *

**Chapter 16**

**PAST**

It was 2:40 am. Having woken up from yet another nightmare, Ulquiorra spent a few minutes debating on whether or not to call Orihime. Finally deciding against it he walked over to his desk and opened a drawer that was always kept under lock and key. He pulled out the papers and dumped them on the table. The papers were a decoy. He didn't want anyone to discover the false bottom. Removing the false bottom he got out the thing he was looking for; a leather-covered scrapbook.

Carrying it over to his bed, sat cross-legged on it and eyed the book in front of him. It was something he had never shown to anyone, neither Grimmjow nor Orihime. He both hated and treasured this book. He had discovered that he had a masochistic streak in him. Like a moth to flames he found himself drawn to this book time and again. Sighing he opened the sketch-pad and fingered the photo that was pasted on the first page. It showed two people and a baby who was about a year old. The man, who was smiling, was throwing the baby up in the air which seemed to be squealing in joy while the woman watched on with a mixed expression of glee and apprehension. The photographer had caught a slice of life from this family. Ulquiorra's lips twitched in a fond smirk. Although he didn't remember this time, but he could see that he had been happy.

The next few pages showed his growth from infancy to a thin, pale and medium heighted teenager. Ulquiorra gently fingered each of the photographs, reliving the lost moments of his childhood. Eventually he came on to a page that didn't have any photographs. Instead there were series of newspaper clippings. The first clipping was from 6th April 1998 and read as follows:

_6__th__ April 1998, Karakura Town: The owner of the USC food processing company, Mr. Kaido Schiffer(41) and his wife Usagi Schiffer(39) were found murdered in their resident. Their bodies were discovered by their maid on the morning of April 5__th__. Their son, Ulquiorra Schiffer(13) was found sitting hunched near their bodies, covered in their blood. The boy is catatonic and doctor's opinion is that he is in shock. The Police believe that the boy may be material witness. The investigations are underway. _

The next newspaper clipping said:

_9__th__ April 1998, Karakura Town: Ulquiorra Schiffer (13), son of the business magnet Kaido Schiffer (41), was taken under Police custody late last evening. He is now considered the prime suspect of the murder of his parents, Kaido and Usagi Schiffer. The couple was shot dead in their residence on the evening of 4__th__ of April, 1998. Uquiorra Schiffer's fingerprints have been found smeared all over the murder weapon, a .44 magnum double action colt, which was the property of Mr. Schiffer. No one was seen coming in or leaving the Schiffer residence on the said evening. Ulquiorra Schiffer is unavailable for comments._

The next few clippings showed newspapers speculating about the possibilities of his thirteen year old self being the murderer. There was even a clipping where the psychiatrist who had evaluated him had given an interview. The clipping read:

_5__th__ May 1998: Interview with Dr Retsu Unohana. _

_**Dr Unohana, what would you say about Ulquiorra Schiffer?**_

_I believe he is still under shock. I have had three sessions with him so far and the only time he said something was when he asked for some water. All through the sessions, his eyes were fixed on something on the floor that only he could see. _

_**Do you believe he murdered his parents?**_

_I cannot say for certain. He has so far not displayed any signs of violent, aggressive or irrational behavior. In fact so far, he has not reacted in anyway. He has been simply sitting on the chair, not talking, not responding. However, I know that he's listening. I have noticed him nod a couple of times on a few questions. Has he murdered his parents? I don't know._

Through the rest of the interview, the reporter tried various ways to get Dr Unohana to say something conclusive but the woman continued to state that she was uncertain.

He flipped the page and moved to the next set of clippings that chronicled his trail. Since Souske Aizen was a corporate lawyer, he asked his friend Ichimaru Gin to step in as the defense lawyer. Ichimaru Gin was an exceedingly clever and cunning man. He quickly blew holes in the prosecution's case and was able to raise reasonable doubts in the jury's mind. He had even managed to get Ulquiorra to testify. No one knew how he had managed that and Ulquiorra himself couldn't quite recall his exact words but he had finally opened up enough to say that he had stumbled on their bodies and hence the blood and that his hands had fallen on the gun and thus the fingerprints.

The last page contained two clippings; one said that Ulquiorra Shciffer was acquitted because of insufficient evidence and under reasonable doubt. The other one was a tiny piece from 2001 that said that the Schiffers' murder case remained unsolved and is being closed because the trail has grown cold. With a soft sigh, Ulquiorra gently closed the scrap-book that documented his life. Unknown to him, a small droplet had escaped his eyes and was slowly making its way down his cheek.

* * *

Orihime was sitting in the library, taking down some notes when someone occupied the chair next to her. She casually glanced at the newcomer and then did a double take.

"Ichigo?" she whispered unable to contain her surprise. He never sought her out deliberately.

"Hi to you too," he said with a grin.

Belatedly Orihime grinned, "What's going on?"

He looked at her sideways and said, "Can we step out for a bit? Can't really talk in the library, can we?"

Surprised by the strange request, Orihime nodded. The two friends walked out of the library. Once in the corridor, Orihime leaned against the wall and Ichigo stood facing her, his hands stuffed in his pockets. That action reminded her of her emerald eyed friend and automatically a beautiful smile crept onto her face.

"Orihime," Ichigo started licking his lips nervously.

"Yes?"

"What are you doing this evening?"

Completely taken aback she blinked, "What?"

Ichigo brushed his nose nervously, "Ah … I mean … You know … like …"

"I have no plans for this evening," Orihime answered, completely flabbergasted.

"Oh good," he looked relieved, "Will you go for a movie with me?"

"Why?" _Idiot! That was not what you're supposed to say! Damn that Ulquiorra, he's rubbed off on me._

Ichigo looked taken aback, "What do you mean why?"

She waved her hand in front of her face, "No, no, that's not what I meant. What I mean is, yes, I would be happy to."

Ichigo smiled and nodded, "I'll pick you up at around five."

He reached out, tucked a lose strand of hair behind her ear, muttered a thanks and walked away. Orihime watched him retreat with a small smile on her face. She wondered why she wasn't more excited. Her long time crush had just asked her out for a movie and all she could do was wonder what had prompted him to do so. Shouldn't she be thrilled to bits about it? She was happy, but not ecstatic.

Hidden from both of them, someone had witnessed the entire exchange from the shadow of a pillar. His viridian eyes narrowed as an uncomfortable emotion clutched his heart. As he watched, Orihime walked back into the library. He leaned back on the wall and closed his eyes. Why was he behaving this way? He had always known that she liked Kurosaki, then why was it so uncomfortable to witness that smile she had given him. Why did something inside him break when he saw Kurosaki tuck that strand of hair behind her ear? He was nothing more than a good friend for her, her heart lay with Kurosaki. The sooner he accepted it, the better it would be for him.

* * *

Her outing with Ichigo – she refused to term it a date – was pleasant enough. However Orihime couldn't help but feel that that's all that it was; pleasant. There was something missing. Something she couldn't put a finger on to but the 'something' had made its absence felt rather strongly. The two of them were now standing at Orihime's porch, their day together coming to an end.

"So," Orihime asked with a playful grin, "Will you tell me or not?"

"What?" Ichigo asked perplexed.

"Why you asked me to go watch a movie with you, out of the blue?"

"Can't a friend ask another?" Ichigo queried.

"Of course," Orihime answered and crossed her arms in front of her, "But I have a feeling there is more to the story than you desiring a friend's company."

Ichigo grinned sheepishly, "Busted! Actually I … I was kinda upset and I needed a distraction."

Orihime nodded in understanding, "Go on."

"What do you want me to say?" he asked not meeting her eyes.

"Why were you upset?"

"I … I had a fight with Rukia," he replied almost inaudibly.

Orihime sighed, "And who was at fault?"

"I was," Ichigo grumbled.

"So the solution is simple isn't it? Go apologize," Orihime replied sweetly.

"But …," Ichigo started.

"No ifs and buts," Orihime said in a gentle but firm tone, "You sort out your mess and stop looking for distractions. Go."

She gave him a sight shove asking him to move. Ichigo smiled, "Alright, alright, I get your message," he reached out and ruffled her hair, "You're a great friend."

She crossed her arms with a smug smile, "I know."

* * *

Several days later, Orihime was woken up in the middle of the night by the ring of her phone. "Hello?" she answered sleepily.

"Orihime," the voice on the other end was low and carried an almost imperceptible tremble.

She immediately sat up, "Ulquiorra? What happened? Is everything alright?"

"Yes," his voice was tight, "Everything is … fine."

"You had the dream again, didn't you?" she said gently.

He sighed, "Yes."

"I don't like this Ulquiorra," she said in a low voice, "Your dreams … they seem to be getting more and more frequent."

"I know," was the short answer.

"What are you going to do about it?" she asked.

"Nothing," he replied.

Orihime knew Ulquiorra didn't want to talk about it but she knew that he needed to get it out of his system. "That's not an answer Ulquiorra," her tone was firm.

"So what do you want me to do about it?" he snapped.

She had expected his reaction and therefore wasn't offended by it, "I would say face it. Instead of trying to suppress your emotions, let it all out."

She was met with pin-drop silence. Her heart thudding loudly in her chest, Orihime continued, "Before standing up to our father and taking me away from him, Sora used to be very worried. He was scared that he would not be able to face our tormentor. But then someone told him something very wise. 'Our demons are big because we make them so by avoiding them. Once we tackle them head on, they are easily vanquished.' I think it is time you faced your demons Ulquiorra."

The silence that had greeted her was so complete that she wondered if he had hung up. She was about to check when he spoke tentatively, "Will you be ok to meet my friends tomorrow?"

* * *

Ulquiorra sat in the café with his friends as he waited for Orihime to come over. He had chosen the café because he didn't want his friends to know about the park. It was their place, not something that his friends could intrude upon.

"So this chick of yours," Grimmjow said as he stuffed his mouth with a cake, "Ish she commin?"

Szayel cast a look of pure disgust, "You're a pig!"

Grimmjow chewed noisily, the purpose being to irritate the nerd and by the looks of it, he was succeeding spectacularly. Nnoitra was busy checking out a waitress and was mumbling something about 'a sexy ass' incoherently.

Ignoring them Nel leaned on the table, "Finally, I'm so excited!"

"What the fuck are you so excited about?" Grimmjow asked suspiciously, having overheard her comment.

"That there'll be a girl that I can hang out with! You guys are great and all, but honestly, all this testosterone sometimes gets a little too much to handle," Nel explained.

Nnoitra's head spun and he looked at Nel, "Nelliel," he said seriously, "you too?"

Nel looked at him blankly, "Huh?"

"Szayel, come on man. Help the fuck out," Nnoitra persisted.

"What?" Szayl and Nel chorused, completely confused.

"Nel, Szayel here's like the fucking King of nerds," Nnoitra said pointing at him, "If so many tests get too much to handle for you, don't fucking hesitate to ask for help."

As Grimmjow facepalmed, Nel couldn't decide whether to laugh or to cry.

"Please get back to checking out the waitress and save us from your stupidity," Szayel snapped.

Nnoitra shrugged, he had tried to offer help.

Meanwhile Ulquiorra sat stoically, his eyes fixed on the door. Suddenly he spoke, "She's here."

Instantly his friends stopped bickering and turned around to find Orihime make her way to the table, an uncertain smile playing on her lips.

"Orihime Inoue?!" Four surprised voice said in unison.

"Hi," she said sheepishly, "At least I don't need the introductory speech I had prepared."

Almost instantly the four faces split into wide grins as Ulquiorra signaled her to sit on the chair next to him. He proceeded with the introductions, only for the group to realize that Nel and Orihime knew each other reasonably well as both of them were in the cheerleading squad.

"I'm so glad," Nel gushed, "Ulquiorra, Orihime is a sweetheart. You're so damn lucky!"

"Wow," Grimmjow said appearing dazed, "Who'd have thought? I mean …. Wow!"

"So Orihime," Szayel said seriously, "Does Ulquiorra's and by extension our reputations bother you?"

Orihime shook her head, "No. If you let the reputation of a person cloud your judgment, then you're being prejudiced. And I've always believed that one should look past prejudices and preconceived notions if they want to know the real person. Coming to know Ulquiorra, my beliefs have been reinforced."

Szayel nodded, apparently satisfied.

"My turn?" Nnoitra asked.

Ulquiorra had a bad feeling about it but he nodded.

"Are you two an item?" was his question.

"NO!" both of them answered, perhaps a little too vehemently.

At that moment a waiter had come over to take their orders and both Ulquiorra and Orihime busied themselves in the menu-card, thereby missing the meaningful glances that the four others shared.


	17. Chapter 17

**AAANNND I AM BACK!**

Boy have I missed this place and you all! Originally I was planning to be back with a bang, updating all four stories at the same time but then I decided to go ahead and publish this one because I have no cue when the rest will be done. Life is been a bit busy lately because my infant is on the verge of becoming a toddler and all of a sudden my life is an endless series of carpet cleaning and toys picking. XD

Thanks to my awesome Beta Cerice Belle. Seriously, what would I do without you?

And finally, R&R!

* * *

**Chapter 17**

**PRESENT**

Ulquiorra would have carried Orihime to her house, had it not been for the glares of of her friends. Not that he cared what her friends thought about him but they were important to her and she had not yet told them about the subtle shift in their relationship. But then, she hadn't really had the time to say anything to them since she had been in hospital all this while.

So now, he was merely supporting her arm as Ichigo held her bags. Tatsuki, Rukia and Chizuru were following close behind. Ulquiorra didn't know why so many people had to come but he figured it was mainly because of him. Apparently no one trusted him but he didn't give a damn. An uncomfortable car and elevator ride later they were finally at her place. Ulquiorra gently helped on to the bed and Kurosaki put down the bag. Almost instantly the red-head lesbian girl sat down next to her.

"Hime, my love," Chizuru said, "How are you feeling? Are you tired?"

Ichigo looked at Ulquiorra and rolled his eyes. He then tilted his head and indicated that the two of them meet outside. With a small frown, Ulquiorra nodded.

"So girls," Kurosaki said loudly, "Ulquiorra and I are getting dinner. Who wants what?"

After a brief argument, they all decided on Chinese. With a mock salute, Ichigo walked out and Ulquiorra quietly followed. The duo remained quiet all the way down to the car. It was only when they merged on to the highway that Ichigo spoke, "Ulquiorra, Orihime has been terribly lonely since Sora's death. Take care of her, will you?"

To say that Ulquiorra was surprised was an understatement, "What?"

"What, what?" Ichigo grunted, "I'm just asking you to take care of her, is that so surprising?"

"Yes it is," Ulquiorra answered, "Given how you had originally reacted to our friendship …"

Ichigo grimaced, "Sheesh! I was seventeen then, cut me some slack will you?"

Ulquiorra sighed. Well if Ichigo was being friendly, the least he could do was be cordial. Finally he nodded, "I will."

"You will what?" Ichigo said with a smile, "Cut me some slack or take care of her?"

"Both I guess," Ulquiorra replied stoically.

Ichigo nodded.

Ulquiorra looked at him, "May I ask why you're asking this of me?"

Ichigo sighed, "Orihime is a special friend. I care a lot for her and honestly, I have serious doubts about the maturity of our friend circle. You on the other hand, you will understand her needs. You'll know exactly what she wants and when. That's why I'm asking you."

Ulquiorra was both surprised and overwhelmed by the request. Unsure of how to respond, he chose silence.

During the dinner, Tatsuki brought the uncomfortable topic up.

"So Hime, you never really told us how you got injured."

Ulquiorra and Orihime exchanged a quick glance before she spoke, "I fell off the stairs."

"Huh?" Rukia looked up from her food, "How did you manage that?"

"I… I lost my balance," she muttered.

"Hime!" Chizuru cried, "How could you lose your balance sweetheart?"

"I … I …," she looked at the two men to help her out.

"How does it matter? She's fine now, shouldn't that be enough?" Ulquiorra asked.

Ichigo shrugged, "I agree. Besides wasn't she lucky that Ulquiorra was around to take her to the hospital immediately?"

"Which begs the question," Chizuru said glaring daggers at Ulquiorra, "What were you doing with him?"

Ulquiorra was used to such treatment and he didn't pay her the slightest attention. Orihime however bristled, "Chizuru, what I do when and who I chose to meet is none of your business."

Chizuru looked at her obviously hurt, "In most cases I don't care but he is not someone you should associate with Orihime. I don't understand why you choose to associate with this murd …"

"CHIZURU!" Orihime screamed, "I will not have you talk like that about him! In fact, I won't have any of you talk rubbish about him. Just so you all know, he and I are together now, so watch what you say."

"Hime!" Chizuru gasped.

"You're what?" Tatsuki and Rukia chorused.

"You heard me!" Orihime retorted, "Anyone has a problem with it?"

"Hime," Chizuru cried, "How could you do this to me?"

Ignoring her, Orihime continued to stare at Tatsuki and Rukia who, although clearly displeased, nodded. None of the girls noticed the grin and wink that Ichigo gave Ulquiorra.

* * *

After they left, Ulquiorra helped Orihime on the bed and sat next to her.

"They're not really convinced," he said.

She huffed, "I don't care. I'm old enough to make my own decisions, without needing their approval."

"Orihime," Ulquiorra said, his thumb gently circling her hand, "Are you going to press assault charges against Loly?"

"Are we really going to talk about that?" she asked.

"Yes we are," Ulquiorra persisted, "You need to press charges against her. You're injured and…"

Orihime cut him off with a hand on his lips, "Please. Let it go. Whatever she did, it wasn't something she did willingly. I did slap her you know."

He moved her hand gently, "And that was because she called you … names. I would've done the same if I were you."

She sighed, "Ulquiorra, you don't understand. According to Loly, I was stealing the guy she loves. She lashed out. I would've done the same if I were her."

"Stop it!" Ulquiorra said with a little force, "You're doing it again! You're shouldering blame which isn't yours to take. I'll not let you do that. You're pressing charges and that's final."

Orihime sighed, "You won't let it go, will you?"

"No I won't."

"Fine, I'll talk to Nel and see what can be done, happy?"

Ulquiorra nodded. Orihime moved closer to him and snuggled against him, burying her face in his chest. "You know what the one good thing about all this is?"

Enveloping her in his embrace he asked, "What?"

"I finally have you," she whispered.

"You've had me for a while, Orihime, you just didn't know."

"You know, when I saw you again at the airport," she said slowly, "I wanted to be with you."

"Really?" Ulquiorra said, his voice lighter, "If only I had known then, trust me I would have made our stay at the hotel so much more pleasant."

With a laugh, Orihime swatted his chest. Very gently, Ulquiorra pulled her closer. He hooked a thumb under her chin and lifted her face. He gave her a soft peck on her forehead, eyes, nose, and cheeks before claiming her lips in a soft kiss. Orihime opened up to his kiss as he deepened it. Carefully, so as to not hurt her, he laid her down on the bed, still kissing her. One of his hands was at her waist and the other under her neck. Orihime threaded the fingers of her unbroken hand through his hair as she arched into him in response.

Her whole body was on fire. The desire that she had kept buried deep within her for all these months was finally out and she shivered, completely under its spell. Ulquiorra left her lips and moved to her neck, lining it with kisses. Very slowly he moved to her collar bone and gently licked it. His hands slipped into her top, trailing the skin of her abdomen with his fingers. Orihime moaned in response. Ulquiorra stopped his ministrations and looked at her.

"I should probably stop," he said, his voice heavy with need, "Any further and I wouldn't be able to stop. You need to recover before we do anything."

Orihime laughed shakily, "Yeah."

Giving her a light kiss on her forehead he said, "Rest up, I'm right here."

* * *

"I don't get it!" Tatsuki banged the table. The group was at Rukia's house, "Why does Orihime become so stubborn whenever it comes to Ulquiorra?"

"She's dating him now!" Rukia sounded incredulous, "I mean like what? What does she see in him anyway?"

"He's hot," Rangiku pitched in, "I understand."

Chizuru snorted, "Hmph! Orihime is mine. I'm not letting some green-eyed asshole take her away from me."

Uryuu scowled, "Two things Chizuru. One, Orihime doesn't love you and two, he's apparently taken her away from you already."

"Besides," Ichigo spoke up, "Have any of you considered that maybe she's in love with Ulquiorra?"

"Bullshit!" Chizuru snapped.

"What makes you say that Ichigo?" Rukia queried.

Ichigo shrugged, "Just a hunch."

"Regardless," Tatsuki said, "We should keep an eye on them."

"No. I absolutely forbid it," Ichigo said suddenly serious, "No one's going to spy on them, keep an eye on them or monitor them in anyway. If anyone does anything to interrupt them in anyway, they'll have to deal with me."

The entire group was stunned at Ichigo's sudden outburst but agreed with him nevertheless.

* * *

Ulquiorra's friends got the news a few days later and were a lot more receptive of Orihime. The entire group was at Ulquiorra's apartment that evening.

Nel was ecstatic at having her longtime dream fulfilled. "This is fabulous!" she exulted, "I've been waiting for this since the moment you walked into the diner ten years ago."

"Seriously?" Orihime asked, wide eyed.

"Totally," Grimmjow agreed, "I can't tell you how many lectures I've heard because I didn't share either of your contact details with the other for the past ten years."

Orihime shrugged, "I guess there is a time and place for everything."

Luppi, Szayel's boyfriend agreed, "I'm a firm believer of destiny. I believe everything happens for a reason."

Cirucci, Nnoitra's girlfriend, who also happened to be Luppi's cousin, snorted, "You mean that bitch Loly pushed Orihime down the stairs for a reason? The poor thing is in agony and you are looking for bloody rainbows and unicorns? Grow up Lups."

"Always the cynic," Luppi retorted with a dismissal wave of his hand.

"I don't believe in shit like destiny, but in this case, Luppi is right," Grimmjow said, "I mean Ulquiorra would've never mustered the balls to ask her out otherwise."

Orihime giggled as Ulquiorra stared at Grimmjow expressionlessly, "You think that's what happened?"

"Didn't it?" Nnoitra asked.

"No," the two chorused.

"Well I'll be damned," Nnoitra said, "Fuck man, when were you gonna tell us all the juicy details?"

"I wasn't planning on telling it ever," Ulquiorra replied calmly.

"Fuck you," Nnoitra said and then grinned at Orihime, "Orihime, you tell us. Ulquiorra is a bastard."

Orihime laughed and looked at Ulquiorra who nodded imperceptibly. Then she narrated the chain of events that had brought the two together.

"That is so romantic!" Nel sighed.

"Wait!" Szayel cut in, "Does this mean that Ulquiorra hasn't actually asked you out?"

"Not really, no. But he doesn't need to," Orihime smiled.

"What?" Grimmjow said indignantly, "That is absolutely not done! Ulquiorra, formally ask the lady out."

"How juvenile," Ulquiorra spoke.

Cirucci joined in, "No, no, you absolutely must! What is this? Come on!"

Orihime laughed nervously, "Seriously guys, not needed."

"How is it not needed?" Luppi said, "Every couple should have this memory. Come on Ulquiorra."

"This is ridiculous," Ulquiorra said, looking a little flustered.

"You won't do it?" Szayel asked.

"No," Ulquiorra answered.

"Admit it then," Grimmjow said.

"Admit what?"

"That you are a big fucking chicken," Nnoitra finished.

"What rubbish!" Ulquiorra was incredulous.

"Then prove that you aren't a chicken," Cirucci said.

Ulquiorra sighed, "There's nothing to prove."

"Oh so you admit you're a chicken," Nel asked curiously.

"What? No!"

"Then ask her out," all of them chorused.

Flustered and completely cornered, Ulquiorra turned to a furiously blushing Orihime, "Orihime Inoue, will you date me?"

"What the fuck was that?" Grimmjow barked.

"Yeah seriously!" Szayel said, "Get a little more flowery."

"Like how?" Ulquiorra asked.

"Like this," Nnoitra said and whipped out a box from his pocket, went down on a knee and said, "Cirucci, be my wife."

Cirucci gasped wide eyed while a stunned silence overtook the group. Slowly she nodded, tears in her eyes. Grinning widely, Nnoitra put the ring into her finger and turned around to gloat. "And that my friend is how you fucking propose."

"In which universe is that flowery?" Nel asked.

"Whatever gets the girl to say yes is flowery in my books," Nnoitra shrugged.

"Then I was doing just fine," Ulquiorra snapped turned at Orihime and said, "I'm waiting for my answer."

"Yes I would," Orihime answered with a laugh.

The group took turns to congratulate the two couples. When Grimmjow came over to congratulate Orihime he hugged her and whispered in her ears such that only she could hear, "Ulquiorra has had a tough life. If you put him through any kind of misery, you'll have me to deal with."


End file.
